Forget Me Not
by KellyCat77
Summary: When out on a mission, Holly gets taken by the one person she thought she would never see again. He doesn't remember anything, nor does he want to cooperate. But he was suppose to be gone forever...
1. Chapter 1

**So! This is my birthday surprise for my lovely coauthor, CaptainS10. But beware! In the beginning, it will be very angsty! I was crying just writing it. But it will get better, I promise you.**

 **Rating is going to go up, but it wont for a few chappies, so I thought I might get you guys hooked on it before you leave me because of the smut.**

 **Song for this chapter...Make it Rain (Ed Sheeran). I post these for you guys to go and read them with these chapters! I try to make them match. This one is more for the sad melody than the lyrics. Others will be dead on.**

 **This story takes place three years after TEC (the third book) and acts like the others do not happen.**

 **Forget Me Not: Chapter 1**

"Foaly, what in the name of Frond are we doing here?" Holly asked her friend as she sat next to him at the round table in the council room.

The usually large and spacious room seemed cramped and crowded as the entire LEP filed in. An emergency staff meeting had been called 15 minutes beforehand, but no one seemed to know what was going on or why the urgent meeting had been called in the first place.

"No idea," replied the centaur as he squirmed in the tight little seat. The chairs in the council room were specifically made for any creature but centaurs, which Foaly found a little racist. There had never been centaur council members. But then again, centaurs were probably too smart to become a narcissistic, political asshole

Holly slumped in her seat, feeling a little bit claustrophobic with all the people in the room. Everyone had at least one body part bumping into another's. The elf couldn't complain, however. She had a very large stack of boring paperwork on her desk at the moment that she was not eager to get back to.

 _Honestly..._ She thought. She took the job as Captain to get rid of all the desk work.

Foaly leaned closer to Holly, so he didn't need to shout over the other couple hundred people in the room for her to hear him. "I have a few new prototypes that I've been meaning to show you. With all the work you've been piling up, I've barely been able to see you at all."

The elf sighed. "I know, Foaly. But Root keeps giving me so much paperwork, I don't get to leave my office that often."

"I bet you miss all the missions you used to go on," Foaly snorted, "You haven't really been on one since—"

"Artemis Fowl," Holly quickly interjected, looking down. Even though it had been almost two years since they had mind-wiped the young genius, Holly always thought she had lost what could have been a great friendship, "I guess I just realized how dangerous going topside is."

Foaly frowned and cocked his head. "Well, that doesn't sound like you at all."

Holly sighed and bowed her own head. "I know. That's the thought that Root hopes he planted into my mind by now. He does have a point though, since the last time we were with Fowl and all that d'arvitting crap that happened."

The centaur quirked an eyebrow."You're still really upset about Fowl's mind-wipe, aren't you?"

Holly shrugged nonchalantly, "I just think that we wasted a perfectly good tool for the LEP. Fowl had been proven useful on more than one occasion."

"He had also been a nuisance on multiple occasions as well. Including your kidnapping."

Holly rolled her eyes and opened her mouth to retaliate at Foaly, but was interrupted when the entire room went dead quiet all of a sudden. Holly turned in her seat to pay attention like the others. That was after she filed away her argument with Foaly for later, of course.

Root stood at the platform that was placed at the end of the room. He looked over everyone with confidence and a prestigious look. But as he swept his eyes around the room, he never once looked at Holly. When she realized this, it only caused the elf to look closer at her Commander's expression. He might have looked brave and proud up on that podium, but his eyes lacked that. They contrasted with the rest of his body, a nervous look emanating from them. That, in turn, made Holly's stomach twist.

"Many of you are most likely wondering what we are all doing cramped in this tight space." He began, the Commander's voice empowering as ever. "Truth is, this is the biggest room in the LEP, and I decided for everyone to get here. That way, all of you would hear this from me and not spread rumors throughout the building like you usually do."

Holly scrunched her eyebrows, trying to find any other indicators from Root. AS people moved around, the elf caught a glimpse of his right hand. An unlit fungus cigar was held between two of his fingers as he nervously twirled it in his hand.

Julius Root never "twirled" anything in his hands. Holly narrowed her eyes at him, she knew something was wrong now.

"Many of you were working for the LEP a few years ago when Artemis Fowl was a problem for the LEP. Kidnapping one of our Captains in LEPrecon."

All eyes seemed to direct from Root to Holly. The elf slid down in her seat at the stares, her own eyes wide. Why was the Commander bringing this up now? It had been so long since then. Artemis Fowl was a thing of the past.

As whispers grew around the room, Holly spared a glance from the floor to look at Foaly. He looked just as confused as Holly and everyone else in the room. As the two gained eye contact, Foaly shrugged his shoulders. This had to be bad news if Foaly didn't even know what the hell Root was talking about.

The Commander let the rumor-filled murmurs persist for a few more moments before clearing his throat to quiet them down and continuing.

"For some time now, we have been monitoring Fowl's activities. A precaution that took place when he was mind wiped two years ago. Only I and a few members of the council knew about the surveillance."

 _Monitored?_ Holly thought. The only lows clearly stated that once a case was closed, the LEP had no business in those affairs again.

Root sighed and looked down, almost as if he was uncertain how he was going to say this next words.

He stayed like that for a minute before looking back up and licked his lips. "Artemis Fowl has been missing for a good bit of time now. Approximately 4 months from this day. Only the council and I have known about the Criminal Mastermind's mysterious disappearance. However, some new Intel that has proven absolutely true has forced me to call this meeting."

Holly was too numb to move, too stunned to do anything but look up at Root and cling on helplessly to every word.

"This morning, our forensics confirmed that a body the Irish police found two days ago is Artemis Fowl. Drowned at the shore of the Irish Sea."

 **Review plz!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Okz! So, as a sorry to all of you, I decided to post a little earlier. I didn't explain what time this fic takes place!**

 **It takes place 3 years after The Eternity Code, and it acts like the others don't exist. I added it to the first chapter.**

 **Song for this chapter: Roundtable Rival (Lindsey Stirling)**

The room was completely silent with a looming, factor in the air for a second as the elves, sprites, pixies, and Foaly looked around at each other. The room then went into an uproar, with excited, yet slightly mourning, chatter filling Holly's ears. She didn't move, however, her lips pursed and locked as she stared at Root.

The Commander frowned and sighed, sticking the fungus cigar between his lips and lighting it. Root took one last look over the crowd before shuffling his papers together and turning to leave.

Holly faintly heard Foaly beside her, talking to her about Gods knows what. Her eyes were still trained on her boss. As soon as she realized he was leaving, the elf stood up quickly and, ignoring the stares of others, walked out of the room to catch up with Root.

"He's dead?" Holly barked as Root was walking down the hallway. Root, along with the Council Members with him, stopped and turned around to look at her. He sighed once he saw Holly and waved for the others to keep going without him.

"Captain Short." He greeted once the hallway was abandoned. The Commander opened his mouth to say more as he walked towards her, but Holly cut him off.

"Artemis Fowl is dead?" She repeated, her voice wavering and her clenched fists turning her knuckles white.

Root stopped in front of her and sighed, "Yes, he is."

Holly nodded, not looking her Commander in the eye. "How did he die?"

"I said it in the meeting, Captain. Artemis Fowl drowned." Root looked at her with concern in his eyes. "Are you in that much shock, Holly? I have to repeat myself?"

She ignored his comment, scrunching her eyebrows in thought. "Then why aren't we searching for the person who killed him? We should have all of Recon on top of that."

"Killed hi-…" Root sighed and shook his head, "Holly, no one killed Fowl. It was an accidental drowning. There were no signs of struggle, based on the report. The Mud Boy simply fell into the Sea and couldn't come back. The tides probably pulled him under. And, taking account of his physical capabilities, it is entirely plausible."

Holly looked up and stared at him. He sounded like Artemis, using words like "taking account," "Physical capabilities," and "Plausible." It took her back to her first lesson in the Academy. When someone uses unordinary or complex vocabulary, it usually means they are trying to hide something beneath their words. After the Captain realized that, it didn't take her long to know exactly what happened.

Her eyes widened and a small gasp emitted from her throat as she looked at her Commander in disbelief, "All this time, I was wondering how well-developed his kidnappers had to be to get through all of this under our radar. But the truth is…You didn't even try."

"Captain Short, he-"

But Holly wouldn't have any of it, "You bastard…" She gasped, her voice breathless as all the pieces clicked together in her head. Suddenly, she wasn't just plain mad, she was far past that. Holly was so enraged, her cheeks so red, they would make the elf in front of her very proud…If it wasn't for the fact that those cheeks and glare were pointed right at him. "You kept me and Foaly and everyone out of the loop so I didn't even have a chance to save him!"

"No one needed to know about Fowl until the timing was right."

"Until it was too late to help him. Until he was dead!" Holly shook her head in disgust,  
Gods...He was only a teenager, Root!"

Julius scowled, not liking her tone one bit."He was a criminal, Holly. One the LEP should be grateful is gone. Especially you, considering you were the one he kidnapped."

Holly scoffed, throwing her hands in the air. "Yes, because that's all he ever did for the People. Let's just forget all about how he practically saved us from the Bwa Kell and the Goblin Revolution!" A vein in the Captain's neck stuck out as she spoke. "Even then, it doesn't matter! He was 15 years old! Still a kid, with so much life ahead of him!"

"And what about that stupid little invention of his? The C-Cube that caused the Haven-wide blackout. We were lucky to get that ridiculous thing back by the skin of our teeth and that Fowl agreed to have a mind wipe afterwards!" Root looked back down the hallway, paranoid of the Council members eavesdropping on them. "That mind wipe was the best thing that had ever happened to The People."

Captain Short huffed out a short little breath, "We could have found him the moment he disappeared, then mind wipe him again! Ever think of that, _sir_?" She put her hands on her hips in protest.

Root narrowed his eyes at his opposing Captain. "A mind wipe from The People a second timewould have ensured an IQ dip."

Holly had had enough at this point, "A normal Mud Man IQ is better than being brain dead!" Her voice was so loud and shrill that it echoed through the halls. Root winced and Holly cursed mentally, realizing that her eyes were threatening to burst into tears.

Root's face was hard as he leaned towards his officer and lowered his voice. "Short, I advise you to turn around and walk away. Just drop this, and don't you _ever_ talk to me, your Commander, like that _again._ "

Before Holly could retaliate, Foaly finally found his friend and galloped down the hall, grabbing her arm as he realized it was more than just a glaring contest between her and her Commander. "Come on, Holly." Foaly murmured next to her, "This isn't worth your job."

The centaur pulled Holly back down the corridor, away from Root. Fairies were exiting the Council Root in bunches, chatting and filling the halls. However, even if the hallway was bustling, Holly kept her eyes trained on Root as he stood still in the middle of the crowd. Their eyes never broke away from each other until Foaly dragged her around the corner.

"What in Frond's name were you thinking?! Going and talking to Root like that?" Foaly scolded as he and Holly entered the Ops Booth. The centaur sat comfortably in his specially designed chair while Holly slumped into one of the other few metal seats around the room.

The elf leaned forward and put her head in her hands. "Artemis is gone, Foaly." She muttered quietly, her voice a bit muffled by her hands. "Root let him die and now he's really…Gone."

Foaly sighed, turning to his computer and starting to fiddle with his keyboard. "Well, Holly, we all knew the Mud Boy was going to pass sooner or later. He is a Mud Person, after all."

Holly shook her head, wiping her hands over her face in frustration and standing up. "No. Not like that. The great Artemis Fowl that we knew would not die of an accidental drowning! He deserved better than that."

"Don't you think I know that, Holly?" Foaly turned to his friend. "You weren't the only one who knew him. But there is nothing we can do. No matter how hard you try, you can't heal the dead."

There was a moment of pause before Holly spoke up again, her voice quiet. "How fast can I get a private visa, Foaly?" Holly asked, starting to pace the floor.

Foaly's hands stilled on his keyboard. "An hour, maybe two. Why? What are you going to do with it?"

"Foaly, don't act dumb. You know."

The centaur shook his head and turned in his chair to face the elf. "Holly, no. You are not going to the facility where Artemis' report is."

"And why not?" Holly scoffed, crossing her arms over her chest. "We know that any copies the LEP has of it isn't in a computer and is with the Council. If it was on digital access, you would have known. The only options I have are to either trick and break into the Council's quarters, or to break into a silly little Mud Man science facility."

"Or I could do it." Foaly leaned back in his seat. "Break into the Mud Man computers, at least. It wouldn't be too hard."

Holly couldn't believe what she was hearing. Foaly. Paranoid, government-phobic, tinfoil hat wearing Foaly, just suggested to break into a scientific government facility. "Foaly-"

"Like hell you will, Centaur." A voice came from the doorway. Root stood there, arms crossed in front of him as he stared at Foaly. "It's too dangerous, even for you. And do not take that as a test, or I will burn all of those ridiculous hats of yours."

Foaly didn't want to take it as a challenge. To be completely honest, he did not want to touch any government hard drive with a ten-foot electronic pole. But that wasn't the first thought that came to his mind. "Do you have a death wish, Julius?" He rushed from his chair to put himself between Holly and Root. "Or do you just like pissing off Holly with your presence?"

"No. I trust that Captain Short realized by now that I am her Commander. What I do is determined by thinking about what is best from my officers…Except in this case."

 **Review Plz!**

 **I've decided that my favorite review for each chapter will get a custom CoverArt for their stories or a profile pic from me! No personal information needs to be exchanged for you to get it, only access to DeviantArt. So review! Tell me what you like, what you don't like!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Okay! Not much to say here.**

 **Song of Choice: Save you (The Moxy). Goes along perfectly with the second part, I think. LISTEN TO IT, MY MINIONS!**

Holly didn't say anything, partially because she didn't trust herself not to go off on Root again. He was right, she knew that. He was her superior officer. Her boss. Taking this job in the first place, Holly knew that meant she had to trust Root no matter what.

However, Foaly only seemed to hear the last part. But, then again, Root could never fire him and everyone knew that. He was too valuable. That was the reason Foaly could get away with just about anything. "What do you mean, 'except in this case?'"

Root's hardened glare softened as he sighed and passed by Foaly, looking Holly directly in the eye. "I wanted to tell you about Fowl's disappearance the moment I found out. What stopped me, however, was the Council. They not only threatened my career if I told you, but yours as well."

Holly stared back at him, her mimicked hardened expression cracking a bit as well. "Why…Why would they do that?" She asked, her voice a bit breathy.

"The same reason you just blatantly accused me of in the hallway. The Council wanted Artemis Fowl out of the way, and the disappearance made that opportunity golden."

"Commander, I have to get those reports. They might-" She started, but Root stopped her when he raised his hand briefly.

"Here." He revealed a folder from the stack of paperwork he was carrying with him. "This is everything that the Council has…Well, had…On Fowl's mysterious disappearance."

Holly's eyebrows shot up, "This is the only file we have on it?"

"When they said they wanted to keep it from you, the Council was serious. They kept everything they found out in that file. I suggest you stay up late and study this, because I am sending you to the surface tomorrow."

"For what?" Holly and Foaly asked in unison.

Root shook his head, 'This might be a mistake…" He muttered, "but Artemis' funeral is tomorrow. If you want to talk to Butler about all of this, I can tell the Council you went up for the ritual."

Holly nodded quickly, "Yes, sir."

"Good." Root turned to exit the Ops Booth.

"But there is still the matter that Butler doesn't remember anything about The People. He was mind-wiped as well."

Foaly rubbed his hands together eagerly. "That is where I come in." He walked over to a cabinet holding various prototypes of weapons and gadgets. The centaur picked up a small, silver cylinder. "Here." He handed it over to Holly.

She took the small tool, running her hand of the sleek metal exterior. There was a circular button on one side and what looked to be a white light on the other. "What is this?"

Foaly sighed, sitting back in his chair and looking at the two slightly confused elves. "That, Holly, is what I like to call a Memory Flute. I designed it when a couple of d'arvitting officers were fooling around with my sensitive equipment."

Holly chuckled, knowing exactly what her friend was talking about. A few years ago, a few lieutenants had gotten their minds completely erased. They were babbling like babies for a week. She had always wondered how Foaly had fixed it. "So, one zap of this at the big man, and he will remember?"

"Hopefully."

Root raised an eyebrow as he lit a new fungus cigar. "Hopefully? Centaur, I am not sending her up there on a 'Hopefully.' That Mud Man would kill her in a second if he thought she was a threat."

"I haven't tested it on Mud People. Haven't had a chance." Foaly sighed, "And can you please not do that in here? I'm convinced those nasty things destroy brain cells." He pulled down the tinfoil hat on his hat protectively, as if that would have saved him from the smoke.

Root, holding the cigar by to fingers, took it out of his mouth and blew the green smoke into the air, grinning tauntingly. "I will be out of here in a moment, centaur. Holly, Foaly will have your visa tomorrow morning. Study that file." He turned around then, walking out of the Ops Booth and leaving a green smoke train behind him.

Holly looked down at the single file folder in her hands. Everything was suppose to be digitized by now, but Root had always been old school. That, and the fact that the Council did not want Foaly to hack it. It was a moderately thick size, but not too big to where it was overflowing. "I better go." She mumbled thickly before clearing her throat and looking up at Foaly.

She made for the door, but they wouldn't open. "Holly." The elf looked back at her friend, not saying a word. He had a worried expression on his face. "Don't make yourself sick." He advised, nodding to the folder. "There was nothing you could do."

0o0o0o0o0o0o0

As soon as Holly got back home, she decided to relax before diving into the folder Root gave her. Slapping it down on her counter, the elf walked down the hallway to her bedroom. After dressing out of her shimmer suit and into a dark tank top and shorts, Holly went back out and snatched the folder back up, plopping down on her living room couch.

With a deep sigh, Holly opened the file.

 **MISSING PERSONS REPORT**

 **Name: Artemis J. Fowl II**

 **Age: 15**

 **Date of Birth: September 1** **st** **, 1989**

 **Residence: Fowl Manor, Ireland**

 **Family: Artemis Fowl Sr. and Angeline Fowl**

 **Description: Black hair, blue eyes, pale, skinny. No birthmarks or defects.**

 **Last Seen: November 8** **th** **, 2004, St. Bartelby's Academy for Boys. Around 5 PM.**

 **Wearing: Blue St. Bartelby's blazer and pants. Armani tie, black loafers, white button-up**

Holly shook her head. There was a picture of Artemis clipped onto it. He looked almost the same since the last time the elf saw him, just a year and a half older. His eyes still looked as though they held the intelligence of the world. She placed the first page on her coffee table and moved onto the next.

 **POLICE REPORT OF BODY FOUND**

 **Found: April 23** **rd** **, 2005**

 **Suspected Cause of Death: Drowning**

 **Wearing: Tattered white button down and dark pants. No shoes.**

 **Wounds: Bottom of feet, cut across cheek. Blood under nails.**

 **Blood under nails belong to victim, 100% DNA match.**

 **Description: Long black hair, blue eyes. Pale.**

 **Location: Coast of Irish Sea**

 **No identification on person**

 **More information to come in Autopsy Report.**

Holly took this one harder, looking over it twice. She knew, since it was in his folder, that it had to be Artemis. However, a glimmer of false hope shone in her mind. Perhaps it wouldn't be him. _Gods…_ She thought to herself, shaking away the thought. Artemis was gone, and she couldn't accept that.

 _Don't make yourself sick._ Foaly's words flashed into her mind. The elf groaned. That was exactly what she was doing. Putting that report on the table, she looked at the next set.

Now Holly felt as though she was going to be sick. There were at least a dozen crime scene photos clipped together. It was unmistakably Artemis…Or Artemis' body, to be more specific. Because of it's days on the water, his body was bloated, his skin flushed paler than he normally was, ad his eyes swollen shut.

All the blood seemed to drain out of Holly's face until she was almost the same color as the boy in the pictures. She sifted through all of them painfully before reaching the last picture and placing it on the table.

She was now lucky she skipped lunch today, because it most likely would have been spewed all over her carpet. Her stomach curled as she stared at the last picture of Artemis that lay on her table. His face, puffy, and his hair longer than she had ever seen it, hanging in damp clumps around his face.

Holly sighed and closed her eyes, drifting her focus from the pictures onto the next report in the file.

 **AUTOPSY AND FORENSIC REPORT**

 _ **Pupils dilated, and lungs filled to the brim with water. From the definite cause of death: Drowning. No signs of neither struggling, nor any strange bruises on body suggest the drowning was accidental.**_

 **Toxicology Statistics: No drugs or alcohol in system. No signs of drug use in the past.**

 **Fingerprint Analysis: N/A**

 **Finger and skin too damaged to get clean fingerprints from.**

 **Teeth Analysis: Artemis J. Fowl II—Disappeared Nov. 8** **th** **, 2004**

 _ **Only left molar indicated, one gold crown. Serial number is the exact number as Artemis J. Fowl II. Only indent in his teeth, from when he was 6. 100% positive match.**_

 **Blood Test: O-Positive (Artemis J. Fowl II blood type: O-Positive)**

 **Time of Death: April 19** **th** **-April 21** **st** **, 2005**

 _ **No other suspicious data to be recorded**_

Holly shut the file. That was the end of it. Artemis Fowl, summed up in three reports and a handful of pictures. Not once did the reports say anything about his intelligence, about his accomplishments.

Artemis Fowl: Dead and Gone. No one cared about the great things he had done in his life when they wrote the reports. He was just another body they had to identify.

Holly felt a tear roll down her cheek. It felt hot, almost as if it was burning her flesh. Suddenly, she was mad. Mad at the Council, mad at herself…Mad at Artemis. She threw the folder against the wall and pushed the papers off the table, sending them scattering to the floor.

This couldn't be happening. No. Not Artemis. Holly fell to her knees on her carpet, the dozens of papers surrounding her. The elf couldn't hold it back as she sobbed into her hands, tears spilling from her eyes.

It took a while for her to collect herself, and when she did, Holly didn't feel like cleaning up the mess on her floor. Her hands just fell to her lap, soaked from her crying. She took multiple deep, calming breaths while her eyes landed on a picture. It was the one clipped onto the Missing Persons Report, before Artemis disappeared, and another shot of sadness shot through Holly's body. With trembling hands, she unclipped it from the report and stood up.

This was her friend. He started out her enemy, then her accomplice, and finally her friend before the fairies had him mind-wiped. He died never remembering that he had true friends, besides perhaps Butler. He would never remember the great adventures he went on, how he discovered a race of people no Mud Man had ever found out about before.

Holly stood up on shaking knees, gripping the small headshot in her hand. She stumbled, almost drunkenly, to her room and into her bed. The elf's chest was tightened, almost to the point where she couldn't breathe as she started weeping again, laying flat on her bed. She stared at the picture in her hand for what seemed like hours before she felt her eyes closing by themselves. Not long after, the elf cried herself into an unpeaceful sleep.

 **Review plz!.**

 **Props to anyone that shares my mind set. Why would Artemis have that Crown? (It's not in the book, I made it up. Look at the age) First one to get it will get a reward.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Thank you so much for the love of this story! It means sooo much to me, more than you guys can understand.**

 **I want to thank Ru-Doragon for looking over the horrible first drafts I came up with these stories. When I write fast, I tend to mesh stuf up. ;)**

 **Song for this chappie: Fix You (Coldplay) Honestly, Idk why for this song...It just stood out to me.**

 **Chapter 4:**

" _Will you miss him, Holly?"_

" _Miss who?"_

" _The Fowl boy, of course. If everything goes according to plan, we'll be wiped from his memory. No more wild plots or seat-of-the-pants adventures. It'll be a quiet life."_

" _No. I will not miss him."_

Holly gasped as she sat up straight, her chest heaving as she panted. _Just a dream._ She thought. _Just a dream…_

But it wasn't just a dream. It was a memory. A conversation between her and Foaly, when she had contacted him during the last one of her Fowl Missions. The Spiro Needle, where the boy was taken hostage on purpose to get his C-Cube back.

She was horrible. Absolutely horrible. To think of that about Artemis. He would be dead, not three years later. And there she was before, acting like she didn't give a damn about him.

Holly had heard once that in human funerals, the visitors dressed up and wore only black. This seemed strange to Holly, since at the Recycling Ceremonies in Haven fairies wore earthy colors: green and brown mostly.

So, as she boarded her Hot Shot to the surface, the elf wore a plain black pantsuit instead of her LEP Uniform. After all, before she hit Butler with the blast from the Memory Flute, she would have to blend in with the others.

In less than an hour, she was at the gates of Fowl Manor. A number of cars flooded the driveway, as well as the streets. _Most likely business associates of the Fowls._ Holly mused as she started up to the house.

The funeral was in the garden around the back of the Manor, beautifully decorated with elegant and colorful flowers. Holly almost had to roll her eyes. She had previously imagined he would be surrounded by computers, or even gold. Anything that Artemis loved would surround the casket for memory purposes. Definitely not flowers, nor anything else that was considered "outdoorsy."

It seemed as though the eulogy and service was already over, from what Holly knew about Mud Man funerals. The attendees were all leaving the seats that were set on the crisp, green lawn to say some words to Mr. and Mrs. Fowl. Angeline couldn't stop the tears from streaming down her face as she looked at Artemis' dark, wooden casket, while Artemis Sr. tried to hide his emotions behind a very concentrated frown.

The elf realized that she was right to wear the professional black pantsuit, as almost everyone else was sporting something like it. She blended right in with everyone else, or so she thought.

Juliet was not casing the place like her older brother was. Instead, she was standing by the Fowl's side, protecting them, but mainly comforting Angeline.

Any good and well-trained bodyguard knew any guest list forwards and backwards. In this case, the logbook in which people signed in and out of. After a quick headcount, Butler found that there were 49 people in the garden…But only 48 had signed in.

At a normal funeral, perhaps this would go unnoticed, blaming it on human error. That someone had just forgotten to sign their name in the book. However, this wasn't a normal funeral or family. This was the Fowl Family. A family that was known to have many enemies. Butler already found fault in himself for Artemis' death, and he needn't screw up any more. The bodyguard scoffed while he canvassed the area for an unfamiliar face. As if he could screw up any more than killing his charge.

There. A young woman. Probably only a little older than Juliet. She stood at the back, surveying her surroundings. Shoulder-length, flaming red hair made it easy to pick her out of the crowd. The fact that she also looked extremely uneasy was not helping her case either.

Inconspicuously, he locked eyes with his sister and nodded. Juliet knew the drill and took over watching the entire scenario. Holly was just about to say a word to Artemis' parents when a large hand grabbed her shoulder and stilled her, the other pressing a gun into her back. Given the fact that Holly had a clear view of Juliet by the casket, she knew exactly who had taken hold of her.

"I do not wish to cause a scene," Butler whispered into her ear. "Walk straight to the Manor doors directly on your right. Do not say a word, and act natural."

Holly did as she was told. Hell, it wasn't as though she could argue with Butler's Sig trained at her back.

The door that the manservant led her through was the back entrance to the kitchen. Holly kept quiet, like Butler said, but her fingers twitched to reach into her pocket and grab the Memory Flute. However, the elf in disguise knew that one move that was uncalled for could prove to be disastrous.

Butler, keeping his Sig Sauer trained on her, pulled a stool from the island and gestured towards it. "Sit down." He ordered.

Holly nodded silently and inched towards the seat, hands slightly raised. _This is ridiculous._ She thought. However, she was the intruder, not the friend in this case.

"Name?" Butler questioned, his tone gruff and ice-cold as he circled the stool in the middle of the kitchen.

Holly looked down to her hands on her lap. Even with her new, long, human legs, they still didn't reach the floor. "Holly Short."

Butler continued his intimidating circles around her seat. "Are you armed, Miss Short?"

"No." Holly replied immediately. It was true, she did not have a piece of LEP registered equipment or weaponry on her. Everything she had were Foaly's prototypes, which meant that they were not logged to be tracked. The Council had no physical proof of where she was. Although, they were not simple-minded. The group most likely figured out where their Recon Captain was by now.

"And, you do realize what will happen if I find even a pocket knife on you?" More intimidation from the big man.

"Yes."

"Tell me."

Holly swallowed, still trying to stow her twitching fingers. "You will shoot me, without question."

Butler nodded, "Good. Glad to know that we are both on the same page. Now, what are you doing here?"

"I…" Holly licked her suddenly dry lips. "I wanted to see Artemis."

The bodyguard tilted his head to the right slightly and narrowed his eyes. "You knew Master Fowl?"

Holly internally rolled her eyes. This conversation was going to be very redundant unless she used the instrument she had soon. She had to distract Butler's attention...Or attract it even more. "Wait." She looked guiltily to the ground for show. "I do have something in my pocket."

The touch of cold steel against her temple and the sound of a gun being cocked made Holly gulp audibly. "Take it out." Butler growled lowly, "Slowly."

She dipped her hand into the pocket of her slacks, bringing forth the Memory Flute. Butler scrunched his eyebrows at the object. It seemed to be a miniature flashlight. Before the bodyguard could take it from her hand, however, Holly quickly pressed the button on it. A bright white light flashed through the room, one that made even Butler stagger back. No matter what the shock or the pain was, he did not let go of his weapon. A true bodyguard never let go of his weapon, no matter what happened.

Butler rubbed his eyes with the heel of his spare hand, trying to get rid of the white spots that danced in front of him. "What the hell…" He muttered, looking up. His eyes widened at the familiar face. "Holly?"

She smiled over her shoulder at him. "Hey, Butler."

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	5. Chapter 5

**Hello! So! Here's the next chapter.**

 **I was just reading the first book over again and I got the shivers when I realized that it was basically Holly telling Artemis his life story. Has anyone else ever realized that?**

 **Ansyways! The song for this one is My Immortal (Evanescence). Check it out!**

 **Chapter 4:**

The manservant blinked his eyes, the spots dancing in front of his eyes faded away slowly. "D'arvit, Holly, what the hell did you do to me? And what were you thinking? I could have shot you!"

Holly ignored the last part, not wanting to consider the bodyguard's reflexes. "Sorry about that, big man. Side effect." Holly held up the Flute. "Foaly's creation. It removes any mind wipes. You remember everything about the People again."

Butler nodded, rubbing his eyes. He did remember everything again. It all seemed to rush back to him with the bright light. "You seem…Human. Another one of Foaly's creations?"

"Yep." Holly pulled out the necklace she wore under her collared black shirt. It was not her usual book charm, however. It was an orb, with a blue smoky substance inside. Magic. Another prototype that the Council couldn't track. "I figured that even though my elfin state would make you more aware of me, I still wanted to blend in when I first got there."

He walked over to the island in front of Holly so that they could be face-to-face. The bodyguard then let out a sound that was caught between a scoff and a laugh. "You didn't sign the book on purpose." He accused incredulously. "Just so I would isolate you from the others. How very Artemis of you. He would be proud."

The room went dead silent at the mention of Artemis' name. The pain and sadness hung so thickly in the air, Holly could practically taste it. "What happened, Butler?" She asked, her voice as quiet as a mouse as she tried to hide her emotions.

A sigh came from the bodyguard as he stood up straight. "I have the reports-"

"Already read them." Holly cut him off. "Root wanted me to get closure. I'm not here for business." She looked up at him, "I want to know what you think jappened, Butler."

He leaned back against the counter, crossing his arms over his chest. "Honestly, Captain, I don't know what happened.

"Artemis seemed normal when he left for St. Bartelby's—well, as normal as Artemis could be, at least. I was not allowed to stay with him, as per the Academy's rules.

"Then, a few days after the weekend stay, we had a call from the school. Artemis was missing. His parents, Juliet, and I were there within the hour. We combed through up and down with the police. Juliet made sure that I stayed away from the Academy guards, since I was ready to go after them."

"Did you find anything?" Holly asked.

Butler shook his head. "Nothing, literally. His room was immaculate, even. No bags, clothes, or personal effects. It was like Artemis Fowl had never been there. There were no signs of a struggle, either, which caused the police to rule it as…"

"As what?" Holly raised her eyebrow at his uneasiness. She had never seen Butler this nervous...This shameful.

"A runaway. They thought he ran away from campus...From his family."

Holly was floored by this, her jaw physically dropping. "What? That's crazy!" She exclaimed, "Artemis has everything here. Why in Frond's name would he just run away from all of it?"

A sigh came from the Eurasian, not having an answer for her question. "Even with the police's claim, we searched everywhere we could. Mister Fowl and I pulled in all of our contacts, all the favors people owed us. But eventually…" He pointed to the door leading out to the funeral.

"He just, what, disappeared into thin air?"

Butler nodded, "Apparently so. Artemis' parents were devastated when they got the news. As was Juliet and I." The bodyguard wince at the memory. "But when Madam Ko caught wind of Artemis' death." He shuddered slightly, "She was ready to rip my tattoo off with her bare hands."

Holly quirked an eyebrow. She couldn't see where his tattoo was, with the suit he had on, but he had been protecting the Fowl's before she interrupted things a few minutes ago. "Then, what are you still guarding the Fowls?"

"Artemis Sr. and Angeline stood up for me. They convinced Madam Ko that I was not to blame, since the rules of the Academy forbid me from staying with Artemis."

"They are right, Butler. It was-"

"Don't say that, Captain." Butler cut her off icily. "I have heard it too much from everyone else." His tense stature slumped, as though he had given up hope. "I could have found a way around it. Begged to stay, even. I knew something was wrong, him being alone and unprotected by a Butler for so long. Now, I know why, and it's too late."

"You're not the only one to blame for all of this, Butler." Holly whispered hoarsely, looking away. "Gods, one click on a digipad and I would have found out. Just one peek into the Mud Man world. It was probably all over the world…" The Captain sniffed, trying to keep her oncoming tears at bay. "So, let's not play the blame game, alright? What's done…" She trailed off for a moment to collect herself. "What's done is done. Artemis isn't coming back."

Butler closed his eyes momentarily and nodded. She was right, of course. Not even the great Artemis Fowl the Second could escape from the land of the dead. "I believe Mr. and Mrs. Fowl would love to talk to you, Holly."

The female was stunned by his remark. She had wanted to talk to Artemis' parents since she had gotten there, but hearing it come from Butler just then made her not want to anymore. It was as if hearing the statement aloud made it sound ludicrous. "I don't know, Butler. It's not as though I can tell them exactly how I knew their son."

Butler walked over to her, putting his massive hands on Holly's human shoulder and looking her in the eye. "Holly, for them to hear that Artemis had a friend, a person that cared about him and his well-being...It would mean the world to them."

"But, all of those people here today-"

"Are strictly here for business." Butler interjected. "And perhaps to make sure Artemis is actually gone. I assure you, Captain, not a visitor today will shed a human tear for him."

Holly shook her head. "What will I say?" She asked quietly, breaking their eye contact.

"The truth." Butler replied with a shrug, finally letting go of her shoulders. "Or at least a modified version of the truth. Now, come on." He gestured towards the door that led back outside.

Holly exhaled deeply before hopping off of the stool and following Butler. She would have to be extremely careful with what she said, not wanting to give away her true identity. Although, what Holly didn't want was to completely lie to them either. Talking was just as much of a benefit to her as it was to them.

When she saw the pair, Angeline was hugging and Artemis Sr. was shaking hands with the last person in the garden. Holly's heart clenched up. How could she even think about facing them? Holly had helped Artemis save his parents, but could not save the boy himself. It was not fair, especially considering everything Artemis had gone through to get his family back.

Nonetheless, she did not stop as she approached them. Angeline wiped her teary eyes as they turned on Holly. "Good afternoon." Holly greeted both of them.

Angeline smiled and sniffled, "Good afternoon." She returned. Her husband nodded gently and held out his hand.

"And who might you be?" He asked as Holly shook his hand.

"Holly Short." The elf in disguise sighed as she looked at the closed casket next to them. "I was a friend of Artemis."

Both looked mildly surprised at them, Artemis Sr.'s composure slipping through the cracks a bit. "A friend?" Angeline repeated.

Holly nodded, giving them both a small, sad smile. "Yes. Myself and a few others were very close to Artemis." She placed her hand on the dark wood of the casket. "He will be dearly missed."

Angeline put her hand over her mouth, too upset and so close to sobbing that she couldn't speak. The man beside her wrapped an arm around her shoulder in a gesture to comfort her. "They haven't nailed the casket yet, Holly." Artemis Sr. explained. "Just in case we changed our mind about the closed-casket funeral."

Holly shook her head painfully, the pictures she saw the night before popping into her head and making her feel sick. "No, thank you. Butler showed me the crime scene photos."

The man shook his head, squeezing Angeline's shoulder when she turned and buried her face into his neck to muffle her sobs. "We had the water drained from his body. Artemis looks the same way he did the night he disappeared."

Holly looked down, her face paling. The thought of Artemis' small, slender frame, being drained made her even more squeamish. "Perhaps I will." She whispered, mostly to herself. "To...To say goodbye."

Artemis Sr. nodded. "We'll give you some privacy, then." He walked towards the manor, Angeline still in his arms as the man continued to comfort her. Holly turned back to the casket, too scared to open it for a moment.

She knew that once she saw the body, his death would finally sink in. All this time, Holly wished, hoped, fantasized that the documents. rumors, and pictures were doctored. The weren't real yet to her. But opening the dark, mahogany lid and to see him laying there...

Holly choked on her own breath for a moment, diverting her eyes to the sun over the casket. It was almost gone over the horizon, casting an almost magical flow of red and orange cascading throughout the skyline.

The elf watched the sun fade and the sky turn pitch black. The lights of the garden automatically came on, illuminating the space with a dim, blue glow.

Exhaling deeply and closing her eyes, Holly gripped the edge of the lid and pushed it up.

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	6. Chapter 6

**Hey hey guys! It's rainy out right now, so I thought I might as well update! I also have two very important announcements...**

 **One: THE SONG FOR THIS CHAPPIE! Its one of the two songs that really started this story for me. And if you want the ultimate feels for this chappie, read it. "Soldier" by Gareth Emery. I was listening to this song while writing this chapter, and even I was crying! Tell me your reaction in a review!**

 **Two: MY HALLOWEEN SPECIAL! Is going to start on the 19th! 7 days away peeps! It's going to be epic, with all new monsters!**

She let a slow, long breath out of her nose as she saw the body. It was Artemis, there was no mistake about it. As his parents had said before, Artemis looked exactly like she was when she last saw him, albeit three years older and his skin...It was paler, as expected of a carcass.

Was that all he was? A shell of something that used to be? All the things that he had done in life...Did it not matter anymore? No more hacking, incredible plots, smart-ass comments, smirks…

Holly clenched her eyes together for a moment and pursed her lips, reaching into her pocket for the last object she brought with her. The leather cord tugged back, as if wanting to stay hidden deep in the cloth. Finally, the rest of the cord came forth, revealing the circular coin strung up with it.

The Captain looked at the piece of gold. This was it. The last piece of Artemis from the fairy world. She didn't have to fight Mulch for it when she visited him in his cell early that morning. Once hearing the news about the Mud Boy, he willingly handed it over.

Holly tilted the coin in her hand, and it glinted under the dim lamp light, almost like Artemis was smirking at her one last time.

Holly ran her fingers over the metal, feeling the coolness of the gold under her skin in the spring air…

 _The coin rose another fifty feet, then spun earthward. Artemis somehow managed to snatch it from the air. The first cool moment of his young life._

" _Nice shot." Artemis said. The previously solid disk now had a tiny hold in the center._

 _Holly held out her hand, revealing the still raw scar on her finger. "If it wasn't for you, I would have missed altogether. No mech-digit can replicate that kind of accuracy. So, thank you too, I suppose."_

 _Artemis held out the coin._

 _No," said Holly. "You keep it, to remind you."_

" _To remind me?"_

 _Holly stared at him frankly. "To remind you that deep beneath the layers of deviousness, you have a spark of decency. Perhaps you could blow on that spark occasionally."_

 _Artemis closed his fingers around the coin. It was warm against his palm._

" _Yes, perhaps."_

Holly sighed, bringing the coin up and pressing her lips to it before putting it gently in Artemis' hand draped over his chest. She stood there, staring at him for a moment more before opening her mouth to speak.

"Why, Mud Boy? Why now?" She muttered under her breath. It wasn't as if the body in front of her could actually hear anything. "And what the hell happened?"

The unanswered questions only made the cool spring air feel hot and sticky to the elf. She swept her hand over the smooth wood before a voice to her right interrupted her thoughts.

"Hey, Fairy Girl." The tone of the quiet, familiar voice was filled with sorrow and anguish. Holly didn't even have to turn to know it was Juliet, but did so to acknowledge her since her own vocal cords weren't working at the moment.

The usual perky and uplifting blonde didn't seem to be there. In her place was a mourning, nervous wreck. Her blonde, curly hair that always bounced and danced around when she moved was now a shade darker and straighter, as if she didn't feel like curling or doing any extra work with it. Her face was all natural, with no makeup, her red eyes and tear stained cheeks being the obvious indicators of why. In all, Juliet Butler looked older. All from the stress that took place in the last few months.

"Juliet…" Holly finally replied, her voice hoarse as she tried to stop from crying. "How do you…"

Juliet raised the Memory Flute with a flick of her hand. "Dom zapped me with this." She answered her half-spoken question. "Really caught me off guard and gave me a headache. Tell your centaur friend to fix that."

Holly held out her hand and Juliet placed the instrument in it. The elf turned back to the body wordlessly, staring at Artemis and starting to think again.

"He's really gone, isn't he?" Holly whispered, still staring at him with glazed eyes. "After all of what happened, he's just...Gone."

The grass made a crisp sound as Juliet walked closer to Holly, putting a hand on the Captain's shoulder. "He would have been glad to know you were here, Holly."

Holly shook her head sadly, still refusing to look at the Butler. "I failed him, Juliet…" It sounded as though she wanted to say more, but the words didn't come out. That was, however, the moment the tears sprang out of her eyes. "I failed him…"

Before Juliet could say anything, Holly turned and flung herself into the blonde's arms, sobbing uncontrollably into her shoulder. All the shock and pain from the last 24 hours just rolling off of the Captain. Finding out, the photos, the body...It was all too much for her to bear. She needed to let it all out.

Juliet, she had never seen Holly cry at all before, stood there stunned and not able to move for a moment. Then, slowly, she wrapped her arms around the elf in comfort. "You did _not_ fail him, Holly." Juliet whispered to her. Tears were threatening to fill her eyes now. "Three years ago, before the mind wipe...He thought of you as a friend. But Dom and I...We knew you meant so much more to him than that."

Holly raised her head off other the blonde's shoulder, wiping her eyes on the back of her hand. "Juliet-"

"No, Holly." Juliet stopped her with a shake, looking the Captain directly in the eyes. "When you and Artemis me, he was cold, calculating, and downright mean. He didn't think of other's well-being, physically or mentally. But then, after the Goblin Revolution and Jon Spiro, he was more...Human.

"Holly, you did what no one thought was possible. You showed Artemis how to be compassionate to others. You didn't fail him at all." She wiped her freshly damp cheeks. "You helped him more than anyone else could."

Holly's breathing was clipped short due to her intense crying, but she was calming down a bit. "Thanks, Juliet…" She trailed off again, glancing over at the shadowed coffin.

Juliet wiped her eyes again and sniffled. "It's the truth." She explained. The blonde let go of Holly and closed her eyes tight, trying to remember something. "Umm...The people that are going to bury Artemis are going to be here soon. Mrs. and Mr. Fowl wanted you to know that, and wanted to invite you to stay the night."

Holly shook her head feverishly. She couldn't stay the night. For her own sanity. "No. The Council doesn't know I'm here. They don't want me anywhere near Artemis or the Manor. I should get going."

Juliet nodded, hugging the elf tightly. "Well then, bye, Fairy Girl. Don't be afraid to drop in for a while, alright?"

Holly smiled, a real, genuine smile for the first time since she found out about Artemis' death. "Okay." She muttered, and Juliet detached herself from the elf, walking back into the Manor.

The Captain waited until she was sure Juliet was gone before glancing at Artemis one more time. Her smile shrank, but still played along her lips. Before, she was focusing on all the things horrible about what happened to Artemis. And it was terrible. But...He looked different. A type of Artemis that Holly rarely, if ever, got to see in the short time that she knew him.

Artemis looked...at peace.

 **Review! Pretty please?**


	7. Chapter 7

**Hey, Guys! Long time no...Write.**

 **I'm** **not going to lie, there's really no good reason for me disappearing this past month. But, I am back to updating. Hopefully going to get TBR2 updated sooner than later. (Fingers crossed!)**

 **Umm...Oh, yeah. The Halloween Special. Didn't really get that much hype for it, so maybe next year. I have to focus on the remnants of my Xmas special. Kinda left y'all hanging a year ago.**

 **So, that's all the announcements for now. Song for this chappie? Angels Fall by Breaking Benjamin.**

 **Do you guys even listen to these songs or am I wasting my time?**

 **OH YEAH! The italics are parts of the third AF book. Do not own those! I don't own the characters, either. Just the really sad plot.**

Juliet stared out the window of the sitting room until she saw Holly fly off and was sure she had disappeared from sight for good. "She's gone, Dom." She called into the other room.

Butler sighed and walked in the room, wiping his hands with a yellow dish towel. He frowned when he saw the troubled expression on his sister's face. "Are you alright?" He asked, even though he knew what was wrong.

Juliet sighed, shaking her head. She still felt Holly's arms wrapped around her. "She cried, Dom." Juliet turned to him, "It's...A lot to take in, remembering our life with the fairies.."

Butler put the dish towel down on the counter and walked over to her, "You mean, Artemis' life with the fairies." He corrected her.

She nodded. It was true. The memories of her forgotten life were almost too overwhelming to bear. She wiped her eyes gently. "Just...Remembering him in a whole new light." She scoffed lightly. "He save so many people. God, he saved the world."

Butler nodded nodded silently. "And after everything, the People still have the wool over their eyes from his last scheme." He held up a shining gold coin. A replica to the one Holly had put in the casket not even half an hour ago.

Or...Would it be the original to the one Holly had?

Juliet's eyes widened when his brother held up the coin. "I thought-"

Butler smiled and looked down. "Of all the places the fairies looked, the one place they didn't look was the bottom of my shoe."

His sister laughed, her step containing a half-bounce as she walked over and picked up the coin from his hand. "You've kept it all these years?" She asked him incredulously.

"When we woke up from the mind wipe, I just had the urge to keep it safe. I had asked Artemis about it, but he obviously didn't know what it was, or what it did. Nor did he particularly have an interest." He explained, gesturing to the gold token in her hand.

A sense of reassurance warmed Juliet as she wrapped her hand around the object. "Let's.." She looked up at Butler, who was looking back at her intently. "Let's replace the disc with this...So the right coin Holly wanted with him is there in it's place."

Butler nodded, telling her it was an excellent idea. They walked out to the dark garden again, glad the people who were coming to take the casket weren't there just yet.

"I'm surprised Angeline and Mr. Fowl aren't out here." Juliet pondered, looking back at the house behind them. She gripped the coin in her hand, heating it in the cool spring air of Ireland.

Her brother shrugged, looking at her as they stopped next to the casket. It was still open, and he didn't have the courage to look at Artemis.

Yes...Domovoi Butler didn't have the courage.

It shocked him deeply, thinking that he couldn't look at his charge, eyes closed with tinted gray skin. However, it sickened him at just the thought.

Despite what Holly had told him before, the suppressed twinge of guilt in him sprouted into something bigger than what he felt before. It seemed to choke the air out of his lungs. He needed a distracting. Just until he was sure he could look at Artemis' body.

"Yes...I put something in their tea to help them sleep." His voice came out slightly choked, but the emotions inside him did quell slightly.

Juliet's head whipped around and she slapped her brother's arm quite harshly. "Dom!" She blurted, "You know better than to slip something to people without them knowing."

 _Strange behavior…_ He thought. "Jules, you know better than anyone that Mrs. and Mr. Fowl needed something to relax. I'm in charge of their safety, I can assure you that I put a perfectly harmless amount in their drinks." He rubbed his arm in modest pain. She was getting stronger.

Juliet rubbed her temples, much like a certain genius they knew would do. Butler shook away the thought. He needed a distraction that wasn't Artemis-related.

"Just...Don't give anything to Angeline without me knowing." She told him, sending her brother a glare.

Butler looked down at her confused, "You've never been upset at it before."

Juliet opened her mouth, but couldn't find the right words. finally, after a moment, she sighed and looked away. "Because…"

Worried now, Butler put his hand on her arm. "What's wrong?"

Juliet hesitated before taking a deep breath. "Angeline…She's pregnant."

Butler's eyes widened a fraction as he stared at her. "What? When?" He was shocked, almost stunned silent as those were the only words he could muster from his lips.

Juliet looked back at him, "She took a test and it came back positive...The morning they found Artemis' body. She didn't want to say anything to Mr. Fowl."

He shook his head. There was no way to get around the Artemis topic. "The sleeping pills-"

"Did nothing to harm her or the baby, I know." Juliet interrupted him with a sigh, "It's too early to worry about things like that. I'm just saying to be careful from now on."

Butler chuckled, "My baby sister is chastising me?"

It was true, that hardly ever happened. Juliet smiled, "Well, someone needed to." She looked at the coffin. "You want to do this still?" She asked, sensing his panic. It was a new feeling for her, and she didn't fully understand it. Her brother was always to calm and in control. Except for this.

He sighed and finally turned his head to look at Artemis, closing his eyes for a brief moment as he took the disc laying on his body.

* * *

 _It was at this point that Artemis noticed Butler's shirt. The sight knocked the air from his chest like an invisible mallet. Not the hole in the material, but the blood leaking from it,_

" _Butler, you're injured. Shot. But the Kevlar?"_

 _The bodyguard didn't reply, nor did he have to. Artemis knew science better than most nuclear physicists._

 _A large part of Artemis wanted to drape his arms across the bodyguard's frame, and cry as he would for a brother. But Artemis repressed that instinct. Now was the time for quick thinking._

 _Butler interrupted his train of thought._

" _Artemis...Is that you?" He said, the words coming in short gasps._

" _Yes, it's me." answered Artemis, his voice trembling._

" _Don't worry. Juliet will protect you. You'll be fine."_

" _Don't talk, Butler. Lie still. The wound is not serious."_

 _Butler spluttered. It was as close as he could get to a laugh._

" _Very well, it is serious. But I will think of something. Just stay still."_

 _With his last vestige of strength, Butler raised a hand._

" _Good-bye, Artemis." he said, "My friend."_

 _Artemis caught the hand. The tears were streaming now. Unchecked._

" _Good-bye, Butler."_

 _The bodyguard's sightless eyes were calm. "Artemis, call me Domovoi."_

" _Good-bye, Domovoi," sobbed the boy. "Good-bye, my friend."_

* * *

Butler opened his dark blue eyes slowly, wiping the tears leaking out of them. He took a deep breath and felt his sister put her hand on his arm. "You okay, Dom?" She asked, concerned. She had never really seen her brother cry before.

He nodded silently, looking at her. "He saved my life...But I couldn't save his." He said softly after a moment. "The one moment that mattered most."

Juliet shook her head. "We've talked about this, Dom." She sighed, "There was no way to help him."

It was true. Juliet had talked to him about his situation with Artemis before. She should have known Butler wouldn't let those guilty feelings go after one simple talk.

She waited a moment, but when her brother didn't say anything else, Juliet sighed and walked up to Artemis' body.

* * *

 _Butler held the gold coin up by it's leather cord. "I copied your diary and fairy files onto a laser minidisk, then brushed on a layer of gold leaf. It won't stand up to close examination I'm afraid, but molten gold would have destroyed the information on the disk."_

 _Artemis tied the cord around his neck. "It will have to do. Did you plant the false trails?"_

" _Yes. I sent an email that has yet to be picked up, and I hired a few megabytes on an Internet storage site. I also took the liberty of burying a time capsule in the maze."_

 _Artemis nodded. "Good. I hadn't thought of that."_

 _Butler accepted the compliment, but he didn't believe it. Artemis thought of everything._

 _Juliet spoke for the first time. "You know, Artemis. Maybe it would be better to let these memories go. Give the fairies some peace of mind."_

" _These memories are part of who I am." responded Artemis._

* * *

Juliet smiled sadly, looking down at the real gold coin. She flicked it in the air and caught it skillfully before putting it in the breast pocket of his button-down, underneath his suit jacket.

Butler sighed and looked over, his eyes catching the glowing lights of a hearse. "Looks like they're here for Artemis." He announced softly, putting a hand on his sister's shoulder. Juliet turned around to look at the long driveway across the spacious lawn.

"Are you sure you don't want to go to the burial?" She asked, turning back to Butler. Truth be told, she didn't want to go at all, but if her older brother wanted to, she would go with him for support.

Butler shook his head. "I'll make sure they take care of putting him in the car." HE sighed painfully, looking away and closing his eyes,

She bit her lip. "I'll go inside and make us something to drink." She walked back to the manor. "Fair warning, I'm putting something in yours." Juliet smiled at him.

The man sent a small smile back at her, watching as she disappeared back inside Fowl Manor. He turned back to the coffin.

"Good-bye, Artemis." He murmured under his breath, gripping the lid in his hand. "Good-bye, my friend."

He closed the casket shut then. Artemis Fowl never to be seen by anyone ever again.

 **Review, plz!**


	8. Chapter 8

**Merry Christmas, guys! Super busy over here, and Im not even going to start on the Xmas special.**

 **4 Years Later…**

Holly put her head in her hands, groaning in frustration. Rogue goblins, trolls, and pixies running amok close to the surface, and there was nothing she could do about it. Damn it, she should have never taken the role of Major for LEPrecon. She had never had so much desk work in her life than in the last 3 months.

Suddenly, the phone on the desk rang and Holly jammed the speaker button angrily with her finger. "What?" She growled, signing another form.

"Geez, someone got up on the wrong side of the bed." Trouble teased.

Holly rolled her eyes. "Shut up, Kelp. What the hell do you want?"

She could hear Trouble's chuckle crackling through the speaker. "Root wants you down at the Ops Booth, now."

Holly groaned again. "Fine." She grumbled, "Be right down." The elf pounded the button again so hard that a few blue sparks wrapped around the tip of the digit to stop the swelling immediately.

As Holly ventured down the stairs to the Ops Booth, the Recon section seemed abandoned. Almost everyone was gone, trying to take back control of Haven. It had gone to hell over the past year, with illegal smuggling, escape attempts, and even Revolutions bubbling to the surface. And now there was talk about a Rebel group of all kinds of fairies trying to take back the surface...Holly shook her head. She just wished she could do something about it instead of doing the paperwork for it.

 _Six Months Ago:_

 _Holly walked into the Council Chamber, confused. She had just been called out of a flight simulation with the other Captains of Recon to a private meeting with the Council and Root._

" _Commander?" She whispered, sitting down next to him at the circular table in the center of the room. He had a worried expression on his face, which was never good. The last time he had that was…Almost 4 years ago._

 _4 years since the second, and last, Artemis Fowl Incident. For an elf, perhaps that wasn't too long ago, but the pain for Holly still blazed inside of her as though she was still standing over his coffin._

 _Root opened his mouth to speak, but was cut off when Councilman Hilder turned in his chair and folded his hands on the table, looking at Holly with an authoritative glint in his eye. "Miss Short," He started, the other council members listening. "do you know why you are here before us?"_

 _Holly shot one last confused glance over at her Commander before shaking her head. "No, Sir." She sighed, "Is someone going to tell me why, or are we just going to sit here and wait?"_

 _Root looked away, annoyed, and Hilder frowned. "See, this is why I think that this entire decision is necessary. Your arrogant attitude is going to get the entire Recon section in trouble one of these days when you're on the field."_

 _Holly's eyes roamed around the room at the other members of the council, stopping last at Hilder. "What decision?"_

 _Hilder smirked, "Your promotion, of course. To Major. Your own office and-"_

" _Less field work." Holly cut him off, glaring at the man across from her and shaking her head. "I'm not accepting this promotion."_

" _Well, you see, Short, you don't really have a choice."_

 _Holly couldn't stop shaking her head. "Flying is my life, and I'll never be able to do that if I'm a Major."_

 _Hilder stood from his seat, putting his hands flat on the glass table in front of him and glaring back at Holly. "Maybe you should have thought of that before_ _ **flying**_ _to Fowl Manor over 10 times in the last year."_

 _Holly couldn't help looking back at Root for a second before turning back to Hilder. "How do you know that?" She breathed. He couldn't possibly know, she was too careful. Foaly was too careful._

 _The Councilman cocked his head to the side, and sneered. "Are you really undermining the power of the Council? We aren't imbeciles." His voice could have made lava chill, "Your promotion, or your resignation. Pick one, or both you and your commander are publicly charged for treason."_

 _Holly looked back at Root again. This can't be true. It couldn't be happening. But, treason for conversing with known and wanted Mud Men who knew of them...It was definitely capable to pull through a court. Root just nodded back at her, and Holly sighed. She had to trust her Commander._

Holly marched through the crystal clear doors of the Ops Booth and turned the corner into the lap. Trouble sat in a chair, and Root was pacing the floor like a Madman, his face already beet red.

"What do you want, Commander?" She asked, still mildly aggravated.

Julius exhaled a puff of green smoke from the fungus cigar in his hand and flicked the ashes on the end to the white floor.

"I assume you know what's happening around here, Major." Root asked. Holly glared at the title. She hated it. Being a Captain was in her blood. Gods, she hated the Council.

Holly nodded, "Yes, sir. Some rogue dwarfs as digging tunnels close to the surface and are charging a price to pixies and trolls for the chance to have unlimited access to the surface."

Root nodded, "Very good. Kelp." He instructed to Holly's coworker with a nod of his head. Trouble turned in his chair to face the holographic keyboard and monitor in front of him.

"As you know, Holly. Everyone in Recon is at the tunnels, trying to evacuate them and fill them back up." With a few keystrokes, the blueprint for the tunnels popped up on the 3D monitor, a smaller scale of the vast and complex maze that was the tunnel.

"Frond…" Holly mumbled, her eyes roaming over the entire picture. "This must have taken years and...At least 3 dozen dwarfs to create."

Trouble nodded and sighed through his nose, "Yeah, well, we didn't catch it until now, unfortunately. It's massive, almost as big as Haven itself."

"Let's get onto the problem, shall we?" Root snapped, obviously not in the mood to talk about the LEP's mistakes.

Trouble cleared his throat. "The entire LEPrecon section has searched these tunnels, top to bottom, but there is no sighting of any dwarfs. We are double-checking it right now, but it will take days, maybe even weeks, to finish." With another tap of a key, the tunnel zoomed through the screen, almost like they were flying through the tunnels at full blast. "However, we have found a fresh passage. Leading directly to the surface."

Holly nodded thoughtfully. "The dwarfs escaped. To the surface."

The female felt like she was going to be sick. This was terrible. They could be anywhere, and causing who knows what kind of trouble.

Trouble shifted his purple eyes from the monitor to Root, and then to Holly. They were both scrutinizing the hologram. very deeply in thought. Mentally, he laughed. The two were so much alike. "Well," He coughed, getting their attentions again. "We did find a place and time of where they might be."

Holly turned to look at him with one raised eyebrow. "What? How?"

"A piece of paper was left behind in one of the tunnels. A part that looked to be where the dwarfs met regularly." Root rejoined.

Trouble scoffed, his nose flinching in disgust. "Certainly smelled like it." Another few taps showed a piece of paper left on what looked like a dimly-lit dirt table. It was crumpled and very messy, but the writing was clear enough.

It read: _New York City-All American Cafe. 3 PM, Sunday_

"Which is what I don't like about this whole idea!" Foaly came barging through the doors of the Ops Booth, his arm raised haltingly. "Holly, you can't possibly think about doing this!"

Holly looked around at the three others in the room, confused. "Do what?"

Root tapped his foot angrily at the centaur. "Just how long were you waiting outside that door for that grand entrance?"

Foaly gave him an incredulous look. How dare he accuse him of faking his smarts! His ears flattened after a moment. "Ever since Holly came in…" He muttered, going to sit in his chair.

Root shook his head, flicking some more ash onto the Ops Booth's white tiled floor. Foaly glared at the Commander. "Oi! Don't do that! It will stain the floor!"

Holly, as confused as ever, looked at the three others in the room. "Do what?" She repeated, this time more forcefully. "Commander?" She rounded on him, eyebrows raised.

Root sighed glaring back at Foaly and using the heel of his boot to smush the ashes into the floor. Foaly opened his mouth to cry out, but nothing came out as he stared at the mess on his precious Op Booth floor.

"That was for before, centaur!" He exclaimed, cigar pointed at Foaly. "Don't interrupt when I'm explaining a mission!"

Holly perked up at the word. "Mission?"

"You're the only agent who is available and qualified." Trouble stood from his chair and walked over to the hologram. "I can't go. Not with the baby so close."

Holly smiled at her friend. "How is Lili?"

Trouble nodded. "Tired. But not as tired as she is going to be once he's born."

Root cleared his throat. "The mission." He reminded both of them.

"I'm going to the surface?" Holly foreshadowed, looking at the inscription of the note on the hologram. "To track down the dwarves and capture them."

"Correct." Root nodded.

Foaly shook his head. "This is insane!" He stood up from his seat. "Holly, do you understand how _busy_ the streets of New York are? There's a very good chance that you will get caught!"

"That is why she is going to be depending on _your_ technology, centaur." Root glared at Foaly. "So don't mess up. Now, Captain Short." He turned to Holly, who straightened up at the sound of her name with the title that she loved. "Today is Saturday, so go home and get some sleep for tomorrow. Get here bright and early, because there will be a lot of prepping. I'll get Kelp and the centaur to cover your paperwork."

Foaly's jaw dropped while Trouble smiled at Holly. She smiled genuinely, something that had not happened in the months of being a Major, before walking out the door.

 **Please review!**


	9. Chapter 9

**Hiya, Guys! So, I have some good news and some bad news.**

 **Good News: I got a laptop for Xmas and now I can write more frequently and update more!**

 **Bad News: I lost my flashdrive that had EVERYTHING. Most of my writing is backed up on Google Drive, so I have some things...But not everything.**

 **Anyway, maybe some reviews might cheer me up?**

Holly sat in the Ops Booth, waiting for Root and Trouble with Foaly. He was in a foul mood because of the mission, which Holly didn't quite understand why still, It was a mission, and she hadn't been to the surface in so long.

Instead of her usual LEP uniform, Holly came to work in her civilian clothes for the mission: a tank top and shorts. No doubt Root would have something else for her to wear.

"Foaly, get over it." Holly told him. "I'm going on that mission."

Foaly's shoulder sagged, causing the tinfoil hat on his head to tilt. "I know." He grumbled, straightening his accessory. "But that doesn't mean I have to be happy about it. This is a dangerous mission, Holly."

The sympathy of her friend made Holly smile. "I know, Foaly. I'll be careful. You know I will."

Foaly sighed, a small smile forming in the corner of his mouth. "Just...Promise me you'll play it safe. If something goes wrong, get out of there."

Holly nodded. "I promise."

A swooshing noise of the door opening distracted Foaly and Holly from their conversation. Root walked through the door, checking his digi-watch.

Holly crossed her arms over her chest, "Well. Look who's late now."

Root didn't find amusement at her attempt to joke, instead scowling at the time and poking the instrument with a jab of his finger. "Damn thing's broken..." He muttered before sighing and looking up at Foaly and Holly. "Where's Kelp?" He questioned, mainly looking at Holly.

The female elf shrugged. "He called me saying he would be a little late and that we should just start without him."

"Alright." Root replied with a nod, picking out a cigar from the box he carried in a pocket of his LEP uniform. However, one look from Foaly made the Commander pause and roll his eyes before putting it back. "What time is it, Short?"

Holly looked at her watch. "10:15, sir."

"That means you have 4 hours to prep before you're sent to the surface to get those dwarfs." He told her.

"Commander…" Holly sighed, not sure if this was an appropriate time to ask this question. But it had to be asked. "Just...What does the Council think of this?"

Root raised an eyebrow at his officer. "What made you think I was telling them?" He smirked-a very unlike-Root quality. "No...I was planning on them finding out _after_ it all went down."

Holly knew that his response was only suppose to make her feel better, but it just made the knot in her stomach tighten. "That means that this mission has to succeed. If I mess, I could not only ruin my career...But yours as well. I can't do that to you."

"Short, do you really think you have a career now? You hate being a Major."

"Either way, Holly. You'll win this," Foaly interjected. "Julius is right. You're a Captain, not a Major. You belong on missions, not behind a desk."

Taking a deep breath, Holly nodded back. If Foaly, the paranoid freak thought that, then she could too. "Okay."

"The mission is easy," Root started. "You'll be dropped off at the nearest shuttleport and go to the cafe. After that, you wait for the dwarfs there."

"You'll be posing as an undercover, human, American cop." Foaly stated. "It's a public area, so the dwarfs would be incredibly stupid to try anything but to go with you. We're expecting at least 3 to be there, and they will probably be the head of the operation."

Holly nodded. Dwarfs weren't like goblins. They actually had some brains. "So go in, get them, get out. Seems simple."

"And we'll be in your ear the entire time." Root held up an earpiece and mic.

Holly felt the way she always did before a mission-a mixture of nervousness and excitement. Gods, it was invigorating, after so long behind a desk. "Am I wearing 'The Orb' again?"

"The Orb" was a device that Foaly created a while ago. In the form of a necklace, the little bit of warlock magic turned the wearer into the form of a human.

However, Foaly shook his head. "Too risky in this situation." He explained. "You need something that can't be tugged off or worn out. Especially on those busy streets. You need something more...Permanent."

Holly raised an eyebrow at her centaur friend, who turned away in thought and went to the back room filled with all of his prototypes and unused inventions. Holly then glanced at Root, who had the same confused and worried expression as she did.

"Ah! Here it is." They heard Foaly say before he popped back out of the room, a metallic flask in her hand and a smug smile on his face. "This will solve that pesky problem." He told them, handing the flask to holly.

She unscrewed the cap, revealing the contents. It was a golden-green, glowing liquid that looked almost as thick as slime. In all, it did not look appetizing whatsoever.

"What the d'arvit is that, centaur?" Root exclaimed once he caught a glimpse of what was inside the flask.

"That will make Holly human, without the use of The Orb." He explained, "She will remain in a human form until she takes the antidote to turn into an elf again."

Holly nodded, bring the flask up to her lips, but Foaly snatched it out of her hands before she could take a sip.

"Are you insane?! Drink this _after_ you get to the surface! Right now, we have to get you ready and sneak you to the shuttleports without the council knowing, which will be a lot harder to do if you're 5'5."

Root scoffed, "For once, the centaur makes sense."

Foaly beamed, adjusting his lab coat and tinfoil hat. "Why, thank you, Julius."

An eye roll and glare came from the Commander at the use of his first name. Holly tried to hide her smirk behind her hand, which only caused Root to glower at her. He held out one of the two bags he brought in with him. "Go get dressed, Short."

Holly walked out of the back room moments later, fully changed. She was still wearing civilian clothes, but they were more suitable for her mission. The elf wore a light, black jacket over the tank-top she was wearing before, snug fitting blue jeans and running sneakers.

Plucking the earpiece and microphone off of the table next to Root, Holly clipped the mic to her tank-top and put the earwig in her right ear. "What's with the prehistoric devices?"

It was true. Actual microphones and earwigs had been considered to go in museums down in Haven.

"It was the centaur's idea," Root dismissed with a wave of his hand. He was busy trying to connect the equipment Holly had on to Foaly's equipment in the Ops Booth,

"You need to be fully disguised," Foaly explained. "If you're caught by the human police-the actual police-you need to be completely convincing when you say you're undercover." He shrugged, "And why use and weigh you down with extra equipment?" Foaly brought forth a golden badge from his pocket, the letters NYPD on the top and the number 4327 on the bottom.

"A police badge?" Holly asked as she took it from him to examine it further. The elf ran her fingers over the letters.

Foaly nodded. "Anyone who comes up to you should leave you alone after you show them that."

"How did you get this?" Holly clipped it on the waist of her pants and let the jacket fall over it. Completely hidden from sight.

"You doubt my intelligence?" Foaly accused, "It wasn't _that_ hard to break into a mud man computer. Gods, they're stupid. Anyway, I added you to their system, so if the mud man cops do check, you'll show up as an undercover cop that got transferred from another unit after working there for 3 years."

That was when Root clapped his hands together. "Thank Frond, it's finally working." The words echoed loudly in Holly's ear, making her wince and put the earpiece back on the table. "Now," Root continued, turning back to Foaly and Holly. "The code word you need to say if something goes wrong is-"

"Artemis." Holly cut him off automatically, not even blinking an eye. "I'll say Artemis."

Foaly and Root exchanged a look. "Short…" Root groaned. "Choose another one. Any other word."

"No." Holly protested with a shake of her head. "I've used it for all of my other missions beforehand. I'm not changing it now."

"Isn't this just another example of how you can't let go?" Foaly sighed, sitting back down in his specially designed chair and propping his elbow on the clear table, head in hand.

"I'm using Artemis' name. End of story." Holly crossed her arms in front of her chest, giving both of the males a look that told them to shut up.

Foaly's death was surely to come, as he wanted to say more, but the doors to the Ops Booth swished open again and a loud cry came from the entrance.

"Holly!"

 **Please review! New chapter of AHD coming out on January 7th!**


	10. Chapter 10

**Heya, Guys!**

 **I know, I know. I have so much to do. But its the last semester of high school for me. Gods, I cant believe I started writing on here when I was in 9th grade...**

 **Anyway! Dont really have a song for this one, but I hope you enjoy it!**

Holly turned towards the voice and a smile broke out on her face. Meanwhile, a frown twisted onto Root's.

"Corporal, what are you doing here?" He demanded to know and not at all pleasantly.

Lili waved her freshly manicured hand at Root. "Oh, Julius. I haven't been a Corporal since I quit right after the marriage."

"I told her to stay in bed." Trouble followed in, holding a box that he set on an abandoned table.

"I'm fine," Lili replied dismissively. But even then, she put a hand to her stomach, the large size showing how late in her pregnancy she was. She groaned, and Holly and Trouble made her sit down in a chair.

"I'm good, I promise," Lili told Trouble after he threatened to take her home. She looked at Holly and smiled. "I swear, he's going to be in professional grudge ball someday, the way he kicks."

"Which is why you should be at home resting," Root reprimanded, "Honestly, Fro-" Lili cut him a look that made him pause and reconsider what he was saying. "Kelp. What are you doing here?"

After the bout with the fairy growing inside of her, Lili got up and went towards the box that Trouble had put on the table when they had arrived. Her eyes went back to Holly as she opened the latches. "I thought you might need some help." She looked the Major up and down, examining her outfit. "Looks like I was right."

Holly couldn't even hold back her eye roll. Leave it to Lili to try to glam up a mission, even after she resigned. "Lili, I think I'm good. Thanks, though."

The blonde shook her head, relentless about her own mission. "Gods, Holly, when was the last time you got your eyebrows done?" She walked back to Holly, tweezers in her hand, and studied her face closer. Holly slapped away her hand when Lili grabbed her chin, but that only caused her to hold on tighter.

"Don't fight me, Short." Lili scolded Holly, plucking a stray on the end of her eyebrow. "I might not work for the LEP anymore, but I have raging hormones on my side."

She started circling Holly, messing with her clothes and hair. Lili grumbled that the attire would be completely different if it was up to her, but she dare not let Root overhear the quiet mutter that only Holly could understand.

Lili had just sat Holly in a chair, rummaging through her bag for one Frond knew what, when Foaly came over and leaned against the clear table in front of Holly, staring at the elf.

"I should warn you." Foaly started, holding up the metal flask from before. "This does have one side effect."

Images of green skin, buck teeth, red eyes, and rainbow-colored hair popped into Holly's mind. "What side effects?" The elf was almost afraid of the answer that was to come from Foaly.

"Well, before, when I said you'll be an actual human, it wasn't figuratively," the centaur shrugged. "You won't have access to you magic."

Holly had to think that through for a moment as it settled into her brain. No mesmer, no shielding, no healing…

"Will I have the gifts of tongue?" She looked up at him.

Foaly nodded, "Of course, since it is a requirement for your mission. Essentially, since your being and history is still elf, you will still have the tiniest of magic to speak English. But that's it. And the ritual won't work."

Holly shrugged, "You're right. My magic isn't really necessary for this mission, especially in the throngs of the public."

"My thoughts exactly. Julius and Trouble, on the other hand, aren't happy about it, though."

"Hell yes, I'm not happy about it, Centaur!" Root stomped into Holly's line of sight. "I'd always be upset if one of my officers were out on a mission with no magic!"

Holly frowned at bit at Root's comment, which she knew he jabbed at her on purpose. It had been multiple times where she had gone to the surface with next to no magic for a mission. But it wasn't her fault, it was the council's! They were too stingy with their visas.

"Short!" Root barked, snapping Holly out of her thoughts. "Dammit, Short, are you even listening to me?"

"Yessir." Holly answered automatically, almost as if she couldn't stop herself.

The Commander rolled his eyes, knowing full well that she wasn't paying attention to him. "So, as I was saying…" Root turned to Lili. "Holly has to get to the shuttleport, Corporal-" He had to stop when Lili glared daggers at him. "Sorry. _Mrs. Kelp._ "

The pouted her glossy lips, "Fine…" She muttered,closing her cosmetic box. "I'll just stay here with Trubs." She wrapped her long arms around her husband's waist. Trouble smiled down at her and put his arm around Lili's shoulder, the other hand laying on the top of her belly.

"Come on, centaur." Root demanded, beginning to stride out of the room. Holly was busy putting her communication gear back on while Foaly looked back at the married couple and sneered.

"Don't go fornication in here." He insisted, glaring at Trouble and Lili.

The two looked at each other and smirked. Lili flicked her curly blonde hair over her shoulder with her manicured hands. "No promises."

Root checked his digi-watch again, and Holly wondered if her Commander thought it would magically fix itself, since it was still broken. "Centaur, we do not have all day!"

Foaly grumbled as he walked towards the exit with Root and Holly, leaving Trouble and Lili. "Honestly, it's not as though she's going to get any more pregnant…" He muttered unhappily.


	11. Chapter 11

**Heya, Fowlers! Sorry Ive been gone FOREVER, but my laptop has been dead for a while. Honestly, I just got this for Xmas and I was going through problems so soon!**

 **Anyway, Im back for a while, and I have a lot of writing done and ready to post! Maybe...If you comment some more than usual, I'll post it faster.**

 **Song for the Chapter: Dangerous by David Guetta**

It took approximately 15 minutes to get to the shuttleport, 2 minutes for good byes and good lucks, and 30 minutes to prep a private Magma Flare and arrive to the surface.

Over the years, Holly thought that she would get used to the rush and heat of the Magma Flares, but it had never happened like she planned.

No. Instead, Holly had started to hate them. The fast paced chutes made her stomach do quadruple backflips, and her cheeks turned a pale shade of green.

This ride was no exception to that misfortunate experience. As Holly got out of the Hot Seat and stepped onto the earth floor, it took her a minute to regain her footing and recover from the stress. Meanwhile, the Flare sank back to Haven below.

She was in a forest, completely alone as the chute closed again. However, Holly's sensitive elfin ears could pick up noise of civilization that wasn't very far from her position. There were people nearby, as she remained unseen.

Holly reached into the pocket of her jacket and grabbed the small metal flask that Foaly had given her before she had gotten into the Magma Flare. The glowing liquid inside of it was already making the elf sick in the stomach, and she hadn't even tasted it yet.

In her ear, she heard Root grunt. "Drink it, Major. We don't have time for your hesitancy."

With a sigh, Holly brought the flask up to her mouth. Feeling the smooth metal against her lips, she gulped in air heavily before taking a sip of the mysterious green liquid.

Ugh...The texture alone made Holly want to spit it out. It was liquid, but partly solid as well, like slime. It had a plastic taste that was almost chemical.

She swallowed it as fast as she could, trying to act like it was medicine, instead of whatever the hell Foaly had put in it. When the goop finally slid all the way down her throat, with some force, Holly put her hand on a nearby tree to keep herself stable, gagging from the flavor.

"Foaly…" She croaked into the microphone. "When I get back, I'm going to kill you."

No response came to that, and Holly steadied herself upright, wiping her arm over her mouth and groaning again in disgust. She looked down, only to find herself higher than she was before she drank that disgusting drink.

"Not even any sparks?" She asked, almost disappointed as she looked herself over. The clothes she wore had grown with her, thankfully, no doubt because of the magic potion.

"Nope." Root's voice crackled over the speaker again. "Congratulations, Short, you're a fully fledged human."

Holly looked around the trees. The forest was thick, but there was no doubt in her mind that it was also very small. "Where am I going, Foaly?"

"200 feet due East." Foaly instructed, looking over his computer back at the Ops Booth.

Holly looked at the sun, finding the direction and following her training. She was right before, it was a small bunch of trees, which Hannah quickly cleared.

An elegant fountain was placed in the middle of the green area, and people were laughing and running around, some were walking various kinds of dogs, and some were lying on a blanket, looking at the puffy white clouds and blue sky above.

Holly could make out the backwards lettering of "Central Park" on the Entrance Arch, exiting the green, grassy area and into the street.

Everything seemed different. Holly's ears rang from the different noises that surrounded her. People yelling, bells ringing, horns honking.

Foaly cleared his throat. "The cafe is the other way, Holly."

Holly swivelled around, walking down the street the opposite way. "I knew that…" She muttered.

All around her were various noises. Holly tried to block the sounds, but couldn't ignore the people shouting or the _awful_ smell wafting from the alleys around the corners.

Every now and then, she would glance up at the world around her instead of glaring at the sidewalk. However, after a while, she couldn't help but stare at the various street artists, playing guitars and singing for money. People who wore dirty, tattered clothes held cardboard signs, asking for work and money, but everyone ignored them. Instead, they ran about, too busy to look up from their cell phones for one second.

 _Gods..._ Holly thought. _What kind of species is this?_

Now, so absorbed in the events surrounding her, Holly didn't see the oncoming boy zipping by fast on his green bicycle. He swerved as people moved out of the way, but Holly was so distracted that she didn't see him. So, extremely unaware of what was coming at her, Holly yelped as the boy zoomed past her, almost clipping her as she fell to her knees on the pavement.

"Short, you alright?" Root asked in her ear.

Holly grunted, trying to get off of her knees in the crowd of people around her. No one looked down or made any effort to help her up.

"Yeah…" she responded. "Stupid, d'arvitting humans..." Holly brushed off her jeans while others bumped their rushed shoulders into her body.

Facing the opposite direction she was suppose to be going, Holly was about to turn around and keep walking to the cafe, when she stopped in her tracks, her eyes widening.

Suddenly, the world around her went dead silent for a moment. "Artemis!" She screamed at the top of her lungs.

 **Comment plz!**


	12. Chapter 12

**Heya, Guys! Just wanted to update this and let you know Im trying to get the ball rolling for TBR2 again! Its a lot of work, and Im stressed out, but you guys are worth it. 3**

The Ops Booth was built when Holly was just starting out at the academy. It was created explicitly for Foaly when he started his tech job at the LEP. His office was included in his work contract, after he broke into the LEP files in an impressive five seconds flat.

After a year, Foaly proved to be completely invaluable to the LEP, and anything he told the Council he "required" for inventions and missions, he got. The Council, however, was not too happy using the LEP's gold supple on the newest, high-tech equipment for one office, but they couldn't fight one of their biggest assets.

Foaly loved his lab, from the holographic computers to the clear tables and his specially designed chair. He spent more time in his precious Ops Booth than he did in his own flat, which he hardly ever went home to.

That is why, as Root and Foaly rounded the corner to get there, they both stopped in their tracks. The Commander had a mildly amused look on his face as he spotted Foaly's disgusted one.

Trouble was kissing Lili, his hands tightly in her hair. She sat on one of the clear tables, while Trouble settled between her legs.

Once Root was tired of Foaly's shocked expression, he cleared his throat. The pair tore apart as if they were teenagers caught making out, instead of a married couple. They were both wiping their mouths and looking away guiltily.

Foaly scowled at the two and shook his head. How dare they...Defile his lab! "I'm going to have to disinfect this entire place now, aren't I?"

Trouble smirk mischieviously and straightened his wife's shirt, looking around the room and cocking an eyebrow at the centaur. "Pretty much."

Foaly's scowl deepened even more. He was only gone for 45 minutes, tops. How many times could they….You know what? He didn't want to know.

Root broke the awkwardness by walking to Foaly's computers. "Patch us to Short, centaur."

Foaly sighed, going over to his chair, but paused before he settled himself into it. He glanced over at Lili and Trouble, pointing at his white chair and raising an eyebrow. Trouble and Lili exchanged looks before Trouble sat down in a metal chair at the table Lili was still sitting on. Not a word was passed to answer Foaly's unasked question.

An annoyed Root huffed. "Get over it, centaur, sit down, and do your damn job!"

With one more glare at the couple, Foaly sat down hesitantly. A few keystrokes later, and the swoosh of fresh air from Holly's microphone filled the Ops Booth.

Due to the fact that all webcam usage had to be put through the Council, Root didn't get to see what Holly was doing. However, the reluctance in her breathing gave the Commander a pretty good picture of just what his officer was contemplating. "Drink it, Major." He scolded Holly, "We don't have time for your hesitancy."

A glug sound, followed by a gagging noise came through before Holly panted, "Foaly...When I get back, I'm going to kill you."

Foaly turned off the microphone on their side so she couldn't hear him snicker. "i told you she wouldn't like it, Julius."

Before Root had a chance to respond or reprimand Foaly for using his first name, Holly's voice came on the speakers again. "Not even any sparks?"

The Commander looked at Foaly, who shook his head. Root pressed the button to turn the microphone back on. "Nope. Congratulations, Short, you're a fully fledged human."

"Where am I going, Foaly?" Her voice was still a bit on the agitated side as she talked to her friend.

Foaly checked the highlighted route on his screen. "200 feet due East." He turned off the mic again and chuckled, turning around to Trouble. "I bet you 20 gold coins she gets lost at least once."

Trouble looked at Lili, who took a sip of the water she had, her shoulders shrugging. They both trusted Holly's LEP instincts, but Foaly did know Holly better than anyone. "Fine." He replied.

Foaly chuckled again as he turned back around and looked at the map on his screen. "The cafe is the other way, Holly." He informed her.

Trouble dug in his pocket and produced a handful of gold coins, slapping them into Foaly's open hand with a scowl on his face. Foaly put them beside his computer with a smug smile on his.

"All you jocks are the same." Foaly explained after he examined the questioning look on Trouble's face. "Can't do anything without _my_ gear. Be glad I didn't bet for your baby. Not that I would want that little love child of yours."

A silent moment of glaring between purple and golden eyes was followed by a sharp yelp from Holly over the monitor. Root pressed the button to activate the microphone again immediately.

"Short, you alright?"

Yeah…" She grunted a moment later. "Stupid, d'arvitting humans…"

Root and the others sighed in relief, Foaly and Trouble leaning back in their seats while Lili took another sip from her water bottle.

That moment of calm and relief was disrupted, however, by one single word.

"Artemis!"

The codeword.

Holly's voice was high and shrill, panicked even, as it boomed through the speakers at top volume, causing all four fairies to cover their ears.

"Short?" Root called to her. He waited a moment, "Major, status update."

Foaly stood up from his seat when Holly still didn't reply. "Gods dammit, Holly, answer!"

"Alright, centaur, pull up any store cameras or traffic cams. Try to find Short." Root started barking orders. "Kelp-" He stopped when both Trouble and Lili looked at him in response. " _Major_ Kelp, try to access Holly's location."

"What can I do?" Lili asked.

"Go home and rest, Mrs. Kelp." Root demanded, "You aren't needed here."

Lili scowled protestingly and remained sitting, taking another sip of water, but never taking her glaring eyes off of Root.

The Commander rolled his eyes and turned his attention back to the computers. He had to find his undercover officer.

"Anything?" He asked, glancing at the screens Foaly was searching.

"Nothing, Julius. It's a funny fact about traffic and store cameras: they're usually pointed at the traffic and stores, not the sidewalk."

Root let the scathing comment roll, surprisingly, since he knew they were all on edge. "Kelp?"

"Nothing, sir." Trouble reported. "It seems she turned her equipment off."

"That or it was destroyed…" Foaly muttered, still busy checking all the cameras in New York City.

"D'arvit…" Root cursed under his breath. "He rubbed his eyes, trying to think. "Okay, we need to-"

"What the hell is going on in here?!" Hilder burst through the Ops Booth clear glass doors, an override key in his hand. Foaly mentally groaned. Even his doors could be unlocked by the Head Councilman.

Root sighed and braced himself against one of the tabled. All the things that were starting to pile up on his shoulders was beginning to be too much to bear. "Nothing, Councilman."

Hilder scoffed, "Nothing my ass, Root." He turned to Lili. "And what are you doing here, _Mrs. Kelp_?" He made sure to enunciate her current title. "Last I heard, you had resigned."

Lili didn't say a word, just glared at the male elf. Her husband chuckled behind his hand, knowing that she could take care of herself.

Hilder decided not to have a glaring contest with a pregnant elf and instead turned back to Root. "Where's Major Short?" He asked, "She wasn't in her office."

"Working on the dwarf tunnels." Root answered immediately, almost as if he was prepared to lie.

"Last I checked, she wasn't on the list to go anywhere outside her office during work hours."

Trouble sighed guiltily. "Fine, the truth is…" Hilder turned to him, eyebrows raised, The other three looked at him with alarmed looks on their faces, waiting for what he was going to say.

"I was suppose to take a shift, but Holly took it instead, so I could spend some time with Lili." He stood and wrapped his arms around his wife, being gentle around her stomach.

Hilder rubbed the dark stubble on his jaw. "Funny...I checked the actual roster, and you weren't on there."

"Gods, Hilder, why are you being so diligent for once in your life?" Foaly groaned.

The councilman narrowed his gray eyes at Foaly. "Watch it, centaur. I might not be able to fire you, but I sure can ground you to a broom closet for a week." He started to walk over to him. "Now, what are you all _really_ working on?"

Everyone exchanged wide-eyed glances behind Hilder, even Root. Holly's undercover identity was plastered on the lower half of his screen, and the New York cameras were on the top. Too many to close out of. Hilder would surely know something involving Holly was up, and they couldn't afford to be seriously interrogated. Not with Holly and Root's jobs on the line.

Before she could think, Lili grabbed her water and dumped it on her pants. She flung the bottle out of sight, hopping down from the table and crying out while clutching her stomach. "I think my water just broke!"

 **Mm, gotta love my endings. Review please!**


	13. Chapter 13

When Holly was at the Academy, training to be in the LEP, there was one class she absolutely hated. Citizen's relation. An hour and a half every day of learning about how fairies-and even humans, sometimes-react to different scenarios.

Essentially, it was one of the easiest classes at the Academy. However, it was so boring to Holly that she found herself dozing off at her desk. Daydreams of flying through the skies of the surface filling her head.

One day, the Professor of the class took Holly aside. She was failing the class miserably. Holly just nodded then, more focused on the fact that he smelled like old coffee and wore a tweed jacket.

However, upon going home, her senses came back to her. She had to pass that class or else she would have to take it again.

The next morning, Holly asked the sprite if there was a way she could pass the class.

The Professor brushed his blond bangs back and smirked at her. "I might have something in mind." He replied mischievously.

The task was one of Holly's weakest points. The Professor gathered hundreds of students at the Academy and clumped them together in a large crowd. He told Holly that if she walked through the fairies and got to the other side of the room without resorting to violence on the annoying "civilians," that he would pass her.

And so, Holly tried to cross the room, the people pushing into her and holding her back from achieving her goal made the elf more frustrated by the second.

Holly thought she was doing incredibly well...Until Chix Verbil wrapped his arm around her waist and grabbed her ass.

Before the elf could control herself, she turned around and socked him once in the face. Needless to say, Holly had to retake that boring class over again...Twice.

However, her old Professor's extra credit assignment was nothing compared to the busy streets of New York.

People didn't hold back as they rammed into Holly while she frantically went against the current of the large crowd.

Holly struggled immensely against the humans that blocked her way, her heart and mind racing more than ever. Somewhere along way, her earpiece was even jostled off and crushed under the shoes of dozens.

But Holly couldn't care less about her equipment at this point.

Finally, what seemed to be a miracle happened. Holly managed to escape most of the rather large crowd. She looked at the coffee cart that caught her attention before, whatever breath she had left her right then and there.

All the doubt and thought of hallucination flew out into the street as she stared at him.

No...She shouldn't have been staring at him. Holly wasn't suppose to see those ivory locks or slender fingers again.

It was impossible...Right?

"Artemis!" She hollered again, almost certain he wouldn't-

He looked up. Icy blue eyes connecting to warm hazel ones.

Times seemed to slow for Holly as the brown cup in the man's hand dropped to the ground, spilling all over the edge of the sidewalk. He took off running into the nearest alley, and Holly followed right after him.

Bile rose in her throat as she ran in between two buildings, and not just because of the horrifying aroma wafting from the dumpsters that lined the brick walls.

He couldn't be real. He was...He was dead. Holly's mind flashed back to the funeral. She saw him lying in that coffin. She remembered his pale skin and stiff body…

 _He was dead._

Holly watched him run into a hotel, not even waiting for the doorman to open the front glass doors, and she followed right after.

Zipping through the lobby, Holly ignored the stares from the guests and the nasty looks from the employees.

Soon, she chased him onto the staircase, abandoned because of the common use of Mud Man elevators.

Running on adrenaline, Holly must have climbed at least 1000 steps until she reached the top level of the hotel. Holly burst through the doors to the hallway, not far behind _him._

Listening to the footsteps and the slam of the door, Holly rounded the corner and went to the last door in the hallway. Room 341.

Waiting a moment before barging in, Holly took a few deep breaths to calm herself.

Her mind still zinged with electricity like it was struck by lightning. Artemis wasn't fit like that. He couldn't climb one set of stairs without having to catch his breath, let alone 30.

But who was that then?

Reaching into her hair, she grabbed a bobby pin that Lili had put into her hair from before. Thanking the Gods for Lili for probably the first time in her life, she started to unlock the door.

In just a few short moments, the lock gave way with a soft _click._

In all honesty, her LEP instincts should have told her not to barge into a room of a hostile human. However, she was so distracted about the doppelganger, that Holly wasn't thinking straight.

As soon as the door swung open and Holly took one step into the room, she was knocked to the floor.

Holly yelped quietly as she hit the floor, her hands breaking her fall a little. She looked up with wide eyes to see the man standing over her, glaring down at her with his icy blue eyes.

Holly's eyes widened a bit as her stomach did a backflip twice. She scrambled back up, putting some distance between her and the man. He just raised an eyebrow and jolted forward to her, his leg coming up and rounding to her. Holly jumped back, watching his foot crash into the vase beside her. The green and gold vase flew to the other side of the room from the force and shattered to a million pieces on the wall.

Feeling more threatened than ever at that point, Holly licked her lips, running forward and giving him a swift punch to the stomach.

He stumbled back, wincing, but not falling.

Immediately, Holly brought her foot up, attempting to kick him in the gut as well and have him fall down so she could incapacitate him.

But instead, the man stopped Holly in her tracks when he caught her foot.

Stunned by the movement, Holly hesitated on her next move.

That was her fatal mistake.

He rotated her foot in one quick motion and Holly yelped in pain as her knee twisted. She grunted as she fell to the ground.

The last thing she felt was a sharp pain in her neck before she blacked out.


	14. Chapter 14

**So, I started a new system for updating. Its been working so far. Basically, it depends on how many people review in the first 24 hours I post the story. So it would help you guys to favorite and follow this story so you get a reminder when I update, and to review the story. However, if you dont review in the first 24 hours, its still nice to get a review every now and then. :)**

Lili stumbled into Hilder, still clutching her stomach and looking down at her soaked pants, the water bottle still hidden from sight.

"We have to get to the hospital." Trouble commented, knowing that Lili was faking, but going along with it anyway. He took his wife into his arms, but she pulled away.

"No!" She refused, her eyes wide and dramatic. "The blanket! We have to get it!"

Trouble sighed deeply, shaking his head. "We can't go home, Lil. You're about to start having contractions."

"They can't be that-AH!" Lili bent over, clutching her stomach.

Hilder helped her up, concerned. "Is there anything I can do?" He asked, and even Root and Foaly were surprised at that. Hilder never showed any form of compassion before.

Trouble looked up at him like he was seeing Hilder for the first time. "Oh, Hilder!" He acted, perhaps a little too dramatic. "Thank the gods you're here!"

Foaly looked at Root and they both rolled their eyes. Trouble was no good at acting. Thank the gods he was a good officer...Most of the time. They decided to stay out of the conversation while they hid what was on the computer screens from Hilder. He definitely would have noticed if they closed out the programs, from his close proximity to the monitors.

However, thankfully, Hilder didn't recognize the screens or catch on to Trouble's terrible acting skills. Apparently, miracles did exist.

Instead, the Councilman nodded. "Get on with it, Kelp, what's she talking about?"

Lili grasped Hilder's shirt like it was a life line, "The blanket!" He gasped dramatically again.

Another eye roll from Foaly and Root. Those two were a match made in heaven. Again, at least Lili was a good offic-Well, at least she was pretty.

Trouble sighed, rubbing his face with his hand. "It's a family heirloom of hers. A baby blanket that swaddled the original Frond. I have to grab it from the house." He looked at Hilder, "Can't you take her to the hospital?"

Hilder looked at Foaly and Root, "They can't?" He sneered at them, not wanting to do any work. There was the old Hilder all of them knew.

"No!" Lili gasped, putting Hilder's attention back on her. "They have to help out with the dwarf tunnels. Please, councilman!" She groaned from another fake contraction again.

Trouble sighed, grabbing his keys that he put on the table when he came in. "I'll be there soon, Hilder." He promised, leading him and Lili out the Ops Booth door.

Trouble went off a different way to the exit on the south side of the building, while Hilder helped Lili to the north entrance to get to the hospital.

"Thank you so-Ugh!" She stopped so many times on the way there, Hilder had lost count. She clutched at her stomach as she waited for her "contraction" to pass.

Hilder glared at the people who passed. They were staring at both of them as they ventured down the hall. He didn't like it one bit, being shown as caring to another person. He was suppose to run this building, not be gawked at by his employees and thought of as soft.

He was thinking of ways to fire and replace all the people when, finally, someone came up and helped them with a wheelchair.

"Damn supposed genius centaur didn't think about a stupid wheelchair..." Hilder grumbled, going at a much faster pace than before when she had to walk with the "contractions."

Lili giggled behind her hand silently, trying to hide it as he pushed her down the hallways to the exit. This was too much fun for the blonde elf.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0

"Wow..." Foaly exclaimed, sending a shocked expression to Root immediately after the other three left the room. "That might have been the worst acting I have ever seen." He joshed loudly and sat back in his seat, closing out the dozens of sites, maps, and camera tapes he was on.

Root shook his head, helping him with the other screens. "The only thing worse is Hilder believing them."

Foaly chuckled softly and looked at Root before the smile dropped into a disgusted frown. "Did we just-"

"Agree?" Root finished. "Darvit.." He muttered, getting up. "I'm spending way too much damn time down here..." He took his paperwork and left Foaly to clean up the water on the floor and the computer history.

Root walked to his office quickly, the buzz about Lili going into labor already traveling to his red, pointy ears.

Honestly, he knew Hilder was dumb...But that was the worst acting he had ever seen in his entire life. And the councilman had fell for it. He was a lot dumber than the Commander thought.

As soon as he got to his office, he closed the door and jumped. Trouble was sitting on his desk, staring out the window. "Shouldn't you be halfway to your house?" He barked at his officer.

Trouble raised an eyebrow at him, "I know you know that was fake." He said. The Commander shrugged and Trouble sighed, "Are you worried about Holly?" He asked, knowing Lili could handle herself with Hilder for the time being.

Root ran his hand through his hair, starting to pace his office while Trouble's violet eyes followed him back and forth. "I'm always worried about Major Short." He muttered, thinking. "She's erratic and independent and-"

"Confident and a damn good officer." Trouble got off of his desk, putting his hands on his hips. "She's going to be alright, Commander." He assured Root.

Root looked away and sighed. Despite the entire truth of what Trouble said, he still didn't feel too confident about the situation they were in. The Commander walked to the window, looking out over the streets of Haven. "I don't know, Kelp." He sighed, "If Short taught me one thing, it's to trust my gut...And right now." He turned to Trouble, his face actually showing off how much he was worried about Holly. A rare feat. "Right now, its telling me she's in trouble."

 **I know that the back and forth between Holly and these guys isnt your favorite way. So, let me inform you guys that there's only one more chapter of Foaly and Root and everyone else before I stick with Holly for a little while.**


	15. Chapter 15

**Hey hey! If you haven't seen it so far, I put up a schedule on my profile of my updates. Check it out!**

Holly's head throbbed as she began to stir, her knee in almost unbearable pain. She groaned around the gag in her mouth and opened her eyes to see complete darkness, as a blindfold covered her eyes. Holly felt the cold metal around both of her wrists, binding her to a hard metal surface behind her.

The fight before she was knocked out replayed over and over in her mind. _What had happened?_ She asked herself, tugging at her bonds fruitlessly.

A thousand questions flitted through her mind. _Was that Artemis? When did he get so...Strong?_ The image of the vase shattering to a million pieces made Holly shake her head. She must have been imagining things, right? After all, Artemis barely had enough strength to keep himself together the last time she saw him. Nevermind enough strength to bring her down and render her unconscious..

Holly's thoughts were soon interrupted by the sound of a door to her left opening and closing. Footsteps across a carpet floor ceased right in front of her as her gag was pulled down and the blindfold was removed, making Holly come face to face with…

Artemis?

All the doubts from before were instantly gone as Holly looked up at him. From his stone cold, ice blue eyes to his ebony hair, everything in Holly's body screamed that it was none other than Artemis Fowl.

The man stood up, staring down at her with a concentrating frown as she stared up at him. It was dead silent for a moment before he walked over and leaned on the desk sitting a few feet in front of where Holly sat on the floor. He picked up her badge with long, snow white fingers and looked at it. "So. Holly Short." The ice blue eyes flicked back up to her.

It was Artemis' voice. Holly's heart hammered in her chest. Gods, if it walked like a duck and quacked like a duck…

But one thing still troubled her and set a deep, disturbing tug at the base of her stomach. If it was Artemis, how did he know how to fight? And why was he acting so strange, like before? Argon had assured her nothing would change his personality...

"You…" She had to clear her throat, as her voice was a raspy, throaty tone. "You know my name?"

"I ran your records." He explained, clicking his tongue and holding the badge out so she could see it more clearly. "Holly Short. Transferred to the New York Police Department not too long ago."

Holly's fears came true and the dark tugging inside her grew to her chest, slightly choking her and making her heart burn. "Yeah…" She replied softly. "So what?"

She had to play her role to the best of her ability. If this wasn't Artemis…

"So…" He put the badge on top of the desk and pushed off of it, kneeling down to study her face. "How do you know my name?"

Holly tried to stop her reaction to that, but she could feel her eyes widen and a small gasp protrude from the back of her mouth. "I-I don't." Her voice came out as a breathy whisper. A child could tell she was lying.

This was Artemis. The mix of emotions inside of her became even more confusing for Holly.

He shook his head, "No. You do. You said my name on the streets. Artemis. Artemis James."

"James?" Where in the name of Frond did that come from? No...It was Artemis Fowl! From the crystal blue eyes, to the ebony hair and even the suit he was wearing, it had to be Artemis!

Artemis laughed bitterly, standing back up and leaning back against his desk. "Oh, like you didn't know that." He scoffed. "Now...My only question is: What does the New York Police want to do with little old me?" He crossed his arms over his chest and narrowed his eyes at her.

Holly cocked her head, still extremely stunned. "I-I don't understand-"

"Oh, shut up." He ordered harshly. "Don't give me that, I ran your badge. Your mission. Why you ran me back all the way to my hotel suite without so much of a tracer on you. Hell, you were undercover." He held up her jacket, which was all on his desk. "I know how this works, so all I want to know is what your mission was."

Holly looked down. He must have swept her and her clothes for bugs when she was under. Holly had just realized her jacket was missing and she was in her tank top and jeans.

Artemis kept going, putting her jacket back down. "I doubt you will tell me, however. I know how your system works. So, I'll just have to get what we call a...very extensive record."

"A record?" She asked, confused. "What does that mean?"

Artemis cocked his head, smirking that vampire smirk Holly remembered all too well. "It means that I will know everything about you soon enough. Including any top secret files."

The anxious tugging inside of her pulled Holly every which way. If Artemis was still as smart as before...That meant he could very well hack in the LEP records. Oh, she hoped Foaly was equipped for the worst.

Artemis nodded, "Good. I'm glad we understand each other so far." He sighed, running a hand through his hair. "We might be spending quite some time together here."

Holly's eyes flicked back to him and she winced when she moved her knee. "How long?"

Artemis grabbed an ice pack and her jacket, kneeling next to her again. "A few days. Perhaps a week." Artemis shrugged, "You're detained and with me, so you aren't exactly priority number one." He stood up, "And, depending on the results, I will know what to do with you." He pressed the ice against her leg and tied it there with the jacket. "Does it hurt?" He asked softly, looking up into her eyes.

Holly nodded, "Thanks." She whispered.

He ignored her comment. "I have to work now." Artemis told her, reaching for the gag around her neck. Holly flinched and shook her head.

"Please...I promise I won't scream." She pleaded, her hazel eyes wide.

A soft sigh came from his mouth as Artemis looked down and shook his head. "My suite is soundproof." He said, "But I still have housekeeping coming through here in an hour. They know not to come in this room, but I'm keeping the door locked anyway."

Holly looked back at him and, after a pause, opened her mouth willingly.

Artemis put the gag back in and tightened it around her. He patted her shoulder and stood up. "Try and get some sleep."

Holly leaned back against the cabinet she was cuffed to. Like hell she would be able to go to sleep. Her mind already reeled a million miles per second. She stared at him while he closed the blinds to his window, making his office go dark, and as he walked out of the room.

 **Review for faster updates!**


	16. Chapter 16

Holly tried to take Artemis' advice to get some sleep, but her mind was abuzz. She found that she couldn't even close her eyes, her brain was so wired. So instead, to keep her busy, they roamed around the room she was trapped in.

The whole room wasn't nearly as big as his old office at Fowl Manor, but it was still pretty blinds were drawn over a large window on the opposite wall, but a spot of light still creaked through the crack in the middle. A bookcase stood to her left, and a dark wooden desk sat, looming in front of her, the badge that Foaly had given her still sitting on it.

Foaly. Holly sighed. It seemed as though months had passed since she last saw him, Root, and Trouble, but it had only been the day before. She had completely forgotten him throughout this entire ordeal with Artemis. Her mission was absolutely ruined since she missed the rendezvous. Those dwarves could be anywhere by now. Holly groaned, and it wasn't just from the paid to her knee this time. She screwed up by running after Artemis.

Holly sighed softly, sitting back against the metal filing cabinet. The handcuffs cut into her wrists, making her wince as she looked at the door.

She thought about Artemis. It was obvious why he wouldn't remember her, since he was still mind wiped. But, why wouldn't he know anything about himself? And where did the name Artemis James come from?

She paused, recalling something she had read from her files the night before. The mysterious J form his file. James was his middle name! But, why would he go by that? It didn't make any sense…

So many questions flittle through Holly's mind like hummingbirds that were high on dozens of energy drinks. Why was Artemis so paranoid? Why did he have to leave? Why was he in the states? Why did he appear to be dead years before? Why, why, why?

Holly flinched again, her bonds cinching her skin every single time she moved. It didn't help her nerves, and it only kept her awake even more and extremely aggravated.

Her thoughts were suddenly cut off when the door to her left opened quickly and Artemis walked in. He dropped his suit jacket and a brown bag on his desk before leaning against it, staring at her for a moment, contemplating her silently.

She stared back at him, not able to say anything with the gag stuffed in her mouth. Regrettably, however, her heart started beating in her chest like a jackhammer again.

When the moment passed, Artemis sighed and strode over to her. Holly's eyes flicked up to him as he knelt down and tugged the gag out of her mouth. "How do you feel?"

Holly licked her lips and cleared her throat, her voice coming out gravelly as she replied. "Sore." She coughed, "My knee and my wrists-"

"Stop struggling and moving your wrists then." He interrupted, almost sharply. "It's no use, and you're only hurting yourself." Artemis went on when Holly looked down and nodded. "All right." He sighed. "May I assess your knee?"

She nodded silently again and Artemis scooted down, his hands moving up her leg gently and probing her knee. Despite Holly's training not to show weakness, she gasped softly and winced. "Hurts." She managed to say.

Artemis nodded, taking his hand off her knee. "Don't worry." He soothed her gently, looking down at her knee. "It's not a break. A harsh twist, at the most." The man stood up, exiting the room for a moment.

Holly leaned against the cabinet, looking at her knee. It has started throbbing painfully again. She closed her eyes gently, knowing she wouldn't be able to doze off.

"You didn't sleep, did you?" Artemis asked as he walked back in, a new ice pack in his hand.

Holly looked down, shaking her head. "My nerves are on fire." She whispered softly.

A deep chuckle emitted from his throat as he kneeled down again, applying the ice pack to her knee gently. "I can imagine." He replied after Holly winced slightly at the pressure on her hurt knee. "You're a police officer, after all, and officers usually have a never-ending curiosity."

She nodded, keeping her eyes on him as he got up and grabbed a black kit from a drawer on the other side of his wooden desk. He was right, it was a known fact and it was certainly true for her. "What's in there?" She asked.

He chuckled again, straddling her legs with his knees and unzipping the kit. "And I was correct, as usual." He smirked at her, and Holly couldn't prevent the shiver that went down her spine as she saw it. Gods, it was a dead man walking.

"Are you always so cocky?" She asked, looking away so she could calm her heartbeat.

Artemis shrugged, taking out a pair of small scissors and a bag. "When you're as much of a genius as I am, you would be confident as well." He smiled down at her. "I have to take a sample if your DNA and your hair for the Record."

"The 'Record,' huh?" She repeated. "The same one that's going to tell you about any of those top secret files?"

He nodded, running his fingers through her hair softly. Holly sighed. It felt good, and comforting, for some strange reason. "My people can access anything. I could probably too, with my advanced knowledge of computers, but I was trained for...Other things."

Finally. A clue to what had happened to him and what was going on. His "people." Being trained. It didn't explain it fully, but at least it was something rather than the nothing that had been haunting her all these years. But she could focus on that some other time. Holly licked her lips and tilted her head as he pulled it back gently, his hands rounding to the back of her neck before he cut off a lock of her hair. "So, based on this Record...What's going to happen to me?"

Artemis shrugged again, putting the lock in a plastic bag and sealing it tightly. "If it comes back empty, you'll be entered into a program and trained to help them."

Holly nodded. Great. More confusing clues to this never-ending riddle. "What will happen to me if I have something on my Record?"

He grabbed a swab and a vial. "The blunt truth?"

"Please."

"I'll have to torture you for more detailed information and kill you." He replied in a casual voice, holding up the swab to her mouth. "Open."

Holly pulled back, nearly slamming her back into the metal cabinet she was chained to. "What?!" She breathed, the breath knocked out of her by his one statement.

Artemis looked at her, raising an eyebrow. "Open your mouth so I can get your DNA." He explained.

"The other thing." She growled softly, looking up at him. Holly didn't know if she should be scared or concerned that Artemis had said that like it was...Normal to torture and murder people. "The killing thing."

He sighed and sat back, lowering his arm. "Don't worry." He told her, "Do you think they will find anything on your Record?" He asked.

"No! I haven't done anything!" She told him hysterically. "Who is _they_?"

"Open." He raised his arm again.

"No." She defied him.

He growled lowly, narrowing his eyes. He was starting to get annoyed. "Open and I'll tell you."

Holly didn't like his tone one bit. Knowing it was useless to defy him, and he hadn't hurt her so far, she looked down and nodded, opening her mouth. The rough cotton swab swiped across the inside of her cheek a few times, and Artemis put it in the vial silently.

"'They' are my bosses." He explained, writing a few things on the bag and the vial before standing back up. "The people who tell me what to do."

"Why do you listen to them?" Holly asked as he put the kit back in his desk and her personal items on top of it.

"Because." Artemis replied vaguely, not looking back up at her.

"Because why?" She pressed.

He sighed, ignoring her as he turned to the brown bag he had brought with him. "Are you hungry?" Artemis asked, changing the topic. "You've been here almost 24 hours and you haven't eaten anything."

Holly nodded her head eagerly, trying her hardest not to move her wrists. He was right, she was starved. However, there was one problem he didn't know about. She looked up at him. "I'm a vegetarian."

Artemis paused for a moment, starting to stare at her again. "All right." He replied after a short while, grabbing the bag and sitting on the floor next to Holly, facing her.

"What?" She asked, resting back as Artemis dug around in the brown bag.

He shrugged. "Never met a kidnappee that was vegetarian before." He chuckled, pulling out a few sandwiches and a styrofoam bowl of steaming soup. "Not used to having a hostage that had their own requests."

Holly looked down, "It's a life choice."

"So I've heard." He opened the soup and tilted it to her. "Vegetable soup sound good?" Artemis smiled and Holly smiled back, nodding gratefully.

She sighed, leaning back as Artemis put the soup down to cool a bit. He seemed...Nice, albeit the whole killing thing and hold her hostage. Other than her wrists, Artemis had tried his best to make her as comfortable as possible. "Cheese sandwich?" He asked, looking up at her. Holly nodded and he took a sandwich out of the shiny foil it was wrapped in, opening the sandwich and taking out the ham that was inside of it. "Don't worry." He told her, "My hands are clean."

Holly smiled softly, "I'm so hungry, I don't even care."

"Oh course." He whispered, holding out the sandwich to her, and Holly took a big bite. She sighed in relief, the hunger quenching inside her as she chewed it and swallowed.

"Thank you." She whispered softly, looking up at him as Artemis grabbed a napkin and wiped some mustard off the side of her mouth. He sighed quietly, having her take another bite.

"Don't act so surprised." Artemis replied in the same hushed tone. "I'm not that bad, unless you try a fast one." He smirked at her gently, taking his sandwiching and taking a bite of his own. "Still warm."

Holly nodded, swallowing her piece thickly. "Why didn't you take my fingerprints?"

He paused, smirking up at her and pulling the sandwich away. "Why?" Artemis asked, raising an eyebrow and running a hand down her arm. "Oh, I know." He leaned over to her, putting his lips next to her ear. "You want to try and run."

She swallowed again, closing her eyes and calming herself. "Maybe."

Artemis chuckled, "Didn't you learn anything from last time?" He said, pulling back and holding out a spoonful of soup. "Besides...I took your fingerprints to get your police reports after I knocked you out. I already have those pretty little prints on file."

Holly wrapped her lips around the spoon, smiling and looking down. "When are you going to let me rest my wrists?" She asked, "Artemis...They really hurt."

He sighed, putting the soup and sandwiches back in the bag. "We'll see tomorrow." He whispered. "Even then, I'll have to tie them in front of you." Artemis ran his fingers through her hair again softly in a comforting gesture. "Try to get some sleep."

She had flinched, but nodded. Holly knew not to show him how scared she actually was, but it was so hard.

The man got up and left after that, leaving Holly alone in the dark once again.


	17. Chapter 17

"What the hell do you mean she's not in labor?!" Hilder hollered at the nurse next to Lili. They had been there for half an hour, and he had just gotten the news that Lili would not be having her baby today.

The nurse sighed, standing up. "It's exactly what I mean." She shrugged, looking at Lili. "Mrs. Kelp is not having any actual contractions."

Lili smiled sheepishly at the councilman, "I'm sorry, Hilder." She apologized. "I really thought-"

"Oh, shut it." He snapped. "I know you were only trying to protect the Commander and that idiot centaur."

"Councilman!" The nurse scolded, "There are such cases of false contractions in women so close to their due dates."

Hilder nodded, sighing and looking to the ground. "Of course. I stepped out of line and jumped to my own conclusions." He nodded apologetically to the nurse and she nodded back, picking up her clipboard and leaving the room. Hilder closed the door behind her, turning back to Lili.

"I really am sorry, Hilder." Lili apologized again, as much as it hurt to do that to the bastard. "It hurt-"

"Save it." He growled, striding over to her and leaning over the female in the plain hospital bed. She leaned back and frowned, not liking the closeness. "I know you faked it."

Lili shook her head, deepening her frown. "What-"

"You heard me." He murmured softly, a small, knowing smirk on her face as he cocked his head to the side. "Really made me believe that you were in labor."

"You heard what the nurse-"

"Shut up." He barked, slamming his hand against the wall. Lili flinched and yelped, gasping as her eyes shot up to him. No form of amusement was on his face anymore. "You spilled the water on yourself."

"I…" Lili looked at him, confusion in her eyes. She didn't know how to respond to that. "I don't know-"

"If it really was false contractions, then your water wouldn't have broken." He scoffed, glaring at her. "You wouldn't have jumped off the table with your pants drenched, screaming that your water broke. So….You. Spilled. Water. On. Yourself."

Lili scoffed, narrowing her eyes at him. He wasn't her boss anymore. "Go to hell." She growled.

Hilder smirked, knowing that he had made her upset. He leaned forward and put his lips by her ear, feeling her shiver against him. "If I find out you have something to do with Short, I will fire Root and Foaly. I will throw you, your husband, and that precious baby of yours in Atlantis for the rest of your miserable lives."

Lili closed her eyes, taking a deep, shuddering breath. "Don't threaten me."

"Don't lie to me-"

"What the hell is going on here?" Trouble asked, opening the door and walking over to them. "Get off my wife!"

Hilder back away, smirking. He had gotten his point across to her. "Of course." He murmured, slipping out of the room.

Trouble went around the bed and sat next to her, grabbing her hand. He frowned. "You're trembling." He said, moving to sit on the bed with her and wrap his arms around her protectively. "What did he do to you?"

Lili shook her head, putting her hands on her stomach. "We have to find Holly, Trubs." She looked up at him, eyes wide and watering as though she was on the brink of tears. "Fast."

0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Holly's eyes fluttered open as Artemis opened the door. She had managed to get some sleep and, even though she dozed off in many short bursts, it was enough. Sure, Holly didn't feel that refreshed, but she felt a lot better than the night before.

Artemis replaced the icepack on her knee, smiling as he sat down in front of her. "How do you feel?" He asked gently, rubbing his thumb under her right eye. "You must have gotten at least some sleep, there are no more bags there."

She nodded. "Are you going to uncuff me now?" Her tone was more than a little eager.

"No." Artemis replied plainly, unwrapping a muffin. "Why are you so adamant about that?"

"Because my wrists feel raw." She growled, her stomach betraying her as it grumbled.

"Calm down, Holly." He told her gently and held out a bite of the muffin for her. "I'll make a deal with you."

Holly raised an eyebrow, taking the bite and not even bothering to chew the soft, warm piece before swallowing it. She wondered what he was talking about. "Hmm?" She took another bite when Artemis held the muffin up to her mouth.

"When I get back, I'll let you walk around. That, and I will tend to your damaged wrists."

She kept her eyebrow raised. "What's the catch?" Holly asked warily.

Artemis shrugged, letting her take another bite of the muffin before wrapping it up and putting it back in the bag he had bought in it. "You have to wait." He patted her head, "I have to go to work."

Holly sighed, looking up at him. "Where do you work?"

He smiled, leaning over to her. "Why?" He whispered softly, Holly feeling his cool breath on her face.

"Because I'm curious."

A chuckle slipped from his lips as he inched closer to her. "All police officers are curious. It's just a fact."

Holly looked down, a small smile tugging at her lips. "A fact, huh?"

Artemis shrugged, "Officers are used to knowing everything." He gripped the gag around her neck. "Or, at least, figuring everything out with the clues that are put in front of you. I bet you're just dying for some clues, Short." He brought the gag to her lips. "Open."

Holly shook her head. She wasn't going to go through another lonely day gagged and tied to a filing cabinet like yesterday. It would make her go insane.

He sighed, bringing his hand down. "I'm late, Holly." He told her. "In my work, that can't happen very often."

"What's 'your work?'" Holly asked through gritted teeth. "Don't gag me."

"I'll make you another deal."

"It seems as though you enjoy making deals, James." Holly arched an eyebrow. She made sure she didn't open her mouth enough to fit the gag in it.

"Maybe I do." He smirked. "And, as long as we're on a last name basis, Short, you should know a little something."

Holly rolled her eyes, wincing as she tugged at her wrists painfully. "Shut up. I'm not opening my mouth." She mumbled. Holly winced as he growled, his tone becoming angry.

"Oh, I'll make you open your damn mouth." Artemis snarled quietly and impatiently. "This is your last chance. I have to go"

Holly held down the whimper that was forming in her throat. "What's that deal of yours?" She whispered.

Artemis closed his eyes and sighed, and Holly could see him letting his short bout of anger out. "I get this gag in your mouth, I don't have to let you out when I get back.

Holly cocked her head. "I won't scream, Artemis. I promise. No one will know I'm in here."

He sighed, looking away and thinking for a moment before leaning forward and kissing her harshly.

Holly gasped, her eyes widening as his lips worked hers roughly. Even though he kissed her with partial rage and with an animalistic quality, Holly could feel her eyes close almost by themselves. However, her problem was when she opened her mouth, waiting for Artemis to push his tongue through the gap. But he didn't do that. Instead, Artemis pulled away, pushing the gag through her mouth and standing up.

She struggled against her bonds roughly, causing her to almost scream in pain. Holly shook her head, watching him turn off the light and leave the room silently.


	18. Chapter 18

Holly sat there on the ground, fuming at the genius who left her there without any words. It wasn't like she could say anything, with the gag shoved in her mouth and tied tightly behind her head.

Her whole body throbbed in pain, any kind of movement-no matter how little-made her wince in pain.

 _He kissed me…_ She thought, taking in slow, calming breaths. _He actually kissed me. Tricked me…_ Holly closed her eyes, resting her head against the cold metal cabinet behind her. It only made the headache worse, but Holly's neck hurt like hell. _What's worse is that I blew my chance of moving._

It was true. She just had to not listen and refuse to open her mouth, and Artemis had told her that he wouldn't move her if he got the gag in her mouth.

Holly sighed softly, wincing. Even her ass hurt from sitting on the hard ground for so long, her whole body numb as it fell asleep. Unfortunately, Holly couldn't find it in herself to let her brain fall asleep like the rest of her.

Instead, she slowly opened her eyes, assessing more of the room. He had to let her out at some point, right? And, even though this was Artemis Fowl and she had a good bit of compassion towards finding him alive instead of dead after all these years, she had to look around to find some kind of weapon to use against him.

There were heavy, dull, and what looked to be leatherbound books on the old wooden bookshelf to her left. That was a possibility, if she could find just the right spot to hit him and incapacitate.

There was also a potted plant in the far right-hand corner. Most likely it was plastic, since Artemis seemed to be away for most of the day, but it still was a real pot. That could be a good projectile. But, then again, she had tried that before, and had seen what Artemis could do to it. The image of him kicking it in their previous fight and it shattering against the wall replayed over and over in her head. Holly settled back, still looking around the small office for something she could use.

It was hours, long painful hours, or waiting before he came back. Holly had watched the light from behind the blonds on the window fade, so it had to be late into the night when the door to the office opened again.

Artemis took off his suit jacket like the night before, draping it over the chair and glancing at Holly. He frowned before walking over, kneeling next to her like he always did.

Holly glared at him, getting sick of his routine with her. That, and the fact that he had pissed her off before and just the sight of him was starting to piss her off again only made his silent staring at her even more frustrating.

Artemis smirked at her obvious rage, getting back up and pulling at his tie around his neck to loosen it. Holly noted he was still wearing suits, although they weren't the same black and white armani suits from his time in Ireland. The one he was wearing today was a navy blue shade, still as business-like as before.

It was when he sat down in his office chair that Holly lost her cool completely and pulled at her bonds in such a harsh manner that it shook the cabinet behind her and she had to muffle the whimper of pain that tried to come out of her. He couldn't just leave her like this! At least take the gag out.

Artemis glanced up cooly, cocking his head as he tried to repress the smirk trying to spread on his face. Holly forced herself to look down, his expressions only enraging her more. Honestly, back from the dead or not, if she had a chance now, she would have punched him.

"Behave." He told her, walking around the desk and kneeling down next to her. "Don't force me to hurt you, Miss Short. You know I will if I have to."

Holly shook her head slowly in defiance, glaring daggers at him since she couldn't use words to express how angry she was.

Artemis gave her a threatening look, "You're not exactly in a position to say no."

Unexpectedly, Holly jolted forward. At least, she was trying to headbutt him, but Artemis was too fast. He grabbed her shoulders, slamming her back into the filing cabinet. Even the gag couldn't muffle Holly scream, the pain throbbing through her entire body.

"Come on." He unchained her hands briefly moving them slowly to her front and holding them there without putting the handcuffs back on. He rubbed the deep red marks on her wrist gently, helping her up. Artemis knew she would be too weak to fight back now. He had to practically carry her to the kitchen, Holly wincing the entire way.

He helped her out of his study door that led straight to the kitchen. It was lighter there, the walls a pale yellow and metal appliances behind a large island with tall bar stools sitting underneath it. Everything was so clean, so in order. It was the room was barely ever used-if used once at all. Artemis pulled out one of the tall chairs and guided her into it. "Don't move and I'll take the gag out." He told her, letting go of her wrists.

Holly didn't move, not having the energy to do that anymore. She sat back, gripping the arms of the chair and glad there was a cushion under her instead of the hard floor. Holly looked back at the office, where Artemis disappeared to momentarily before glancing at the exit.

"Don't try it, Short." He threatened, coming back from his office. "You know you won't get far before I drag your ass back here." Holly looked down, sighing and shaking her head while Artemis walked back to her and hooked his finger through her gag, tugging it out of her mouth. "Hold out your wrists."

"I know why you're acting like such a jerk." She told him as Artemis grabbed one of her wrists, holding it against the arm of the bar stool and using a tie to hold it there. Holly breathed a sigh of relief, the ties much softer than handcuffs, and she knew Artemis did that because her wrists were hurt so bad.

"Oh, do you?" Artemis challenged, grabbing her other wrist. "You know, I could always put the gag back in that pretty little mouth of yours."

Holly looked at him, tilting her head at the genius sympathetically. "They threatened you, didn't they?" She watched Artemis pause. "Maybe...About being late this morning? That's why you're acting so mean."

He shook his head, running a hand through his hair after he tightened her other bond. "Don't start."

"No one is watching, Artemis." She told him, her voice soft and her eyes wary. "You don't have to be afraid of them hurting you here, you know that."

Artemis looked down, "How's your knee?" He asked hesitantly, his eyes flicking up to her occasionally.

"Hurts." Holly shrugged, glad the compassion was coming out of him again. "But...It's not like I've been moving it all day. It's better."

Artemis nodded, opening his mouth to say something else but the doorbell rang. "Mm, that must be the food." He looked at Holly. "I don't have to gag you again, right?" An eyebrow raised at her when Holly shook her head, licking her lips softly. "Good." He grabbed a knife from his bag, setting it on the counter. "Be a good girl, and I won't have to use that."

Holly eyed the knife warily. It was a good 5 inches, the metal blade almost glaring back at her as it glinted in the lights. She looked back at Artemis, not even opening her mouth as he paid for the food, blocking the delivery person's view with the door open ajar.

Artemis came back 30 seconds later, a cardboard box in his hand. "Vegetarians eat pizza, right?" He asked, grinning slightly. Holly nodded, it looked like he was finally breaking out of the hardcore shell the genius had come in with.

"I am sorry." He opened the box, the smell of tomato sauce and melted cheese intoxicating Holly. "About this morning."

"Huh?" Holly tilted her head at him, her mind blank as hunger overcame that she didn't exactly feel her stomach grumbling until food was placed in front of her. Artemis sighed, reaching out and running his thumb under her bottom lip. It clicked into Holly's mind that he had kissed her this morning. "Oh.."

He nodded, grabbing a slice of pizza and holding it up to her. "I was stressed." Artemis scoffed when Holly took a bite. "I know that's not a good excuse for violating you like that, but...I can't be late. Not with a job like mine."

Holly nodded back, swallowing her bit and taking another. Usually, she didn't like pizza, but honestly anything was better than the empty pit in her stomach that had just broke out. She chewed the hot, melted, gooey cheese in her mouth while talking again with her mouth full. "I understand."

Artemis smiled slightly, putting her piece down on a paper plate and picking up one of his own to take a bite. He swapped back and forth for a while before sighing and sitting back in his chair. "You done?"

She nodded once more, looking down. Holly knew he was going to stick her back on the floor in the office. All of her joints started to ache at just the mere thought of it. He closed the box and walked around, opening the shiny reflective fridge on the other side of the counter and putting it in there. "Do you need to use the bathroom?"

Holly shook her head, "No." She looked down at her wrists, twisting them numbly in the ties. They were a little less raw, but it would be better if she had some more time resting them.

"Good." Artemis grabbed his knife again, holding it up so Holly wouldn't miss it-not that she could. "You're not going to make me have to threaten you again, are you?"

Holly smiled, cocking her head to the side. "I think that statement in and of itself is already a threat."

"Don't be smart." He warned, but smirked at her, holding back a chuckle. "You know…" He looked down, putting the knife back on the counter right next to him and starting to untie her bonds. "You're pretty funny, Short."

Holly pulled her wrists back to her as soon as they were free. Perhaps a little too fast because it made Artemis's hand go smoothly, but quickly, back to the knife. Holly eyed him warily and Artemis, after a moment of tense pause, slowly relaxed. She cleared her throat after another pause. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." He grasped her upper arm, pulling her from the stool. "Now, let's make you comfortable."

Holly shifted onto her good leg, wincing and leaning into Artemis a little. "There's nothing comfortable about being handcuffed to a filing cabinet." She muttered, sighing and closing her eyes. She was drained.

Artemis looked at her blankly for a split second. "Hmm…" He murmured, thinking before nodding to himself. This worried Holly, but she didn't say a word, staring back up at him. "Well then, let's make you a bit more comfortable, shall we?"

Holly had no idea what was going through his big brain, but with the smirk on his face, she was sure he had something up his sleeve. "Like what?" She asked, looking back at his office door. She could see the filing cabinet and the handcuffs on top of it. "Giving me a pillow and blanket?"

He chuckled, shaking his head and gripping her arm tighter, as though she would be able to run out the door at any given moment. Holly could barely stand up straight without help. "Come on."

She was walked past the office door and Holly looked up at Artemis, confused. He smirked down at her and led her past his living room area, a fireplace and couch set up next to a spiral staircase. Holly stopped at the staircase, her leg already resisting. Artemis was forced to stop as well and look back on the first step, raising an eyebrow at her defiance before he realized why she really stopped.

"I thought you said your knee was feeling better." Artemis sighed, one arm around her body and holding her hands together while the other wrapped around her knees, carrying her up the stairs.

Holly shrugged, "I thought it was." She looked up at Artemis. "Where are you taking me?"

"I'll give you some pain medicine and another ice pack when I get you settled in bed." He murmured, reaching the top of the staircase.

Holly looked over her shoulder and her eyes widened. It was his room in the apartment, and Holly took in the maroon walls, dark carpet, and all. But mostly, she looked at the bed in front of her. She looked up at the man holding her, gaping at him. "Artemis.."

He set her on the edge of the bed, still holding her wrists together as he leaned over Holly. "Stop." He insisted, blue eyes boring holes into her hazel ones. "You know I wouldn't do anything to you."

"I don't _know_ anything." Holly tried to pull away, to no avail. Jeesh, he was strong. "You're the one who kissed me this morning."

Artemis raised an eyebrow. "You're the one who kissed back." He smirked at her and chuckled as he diverted his attention to his bedside table, grabbing the pair of handcuffs on it.

Holly was finally able to wrench one hand free from his grip and when Artemis turned back around, she slapped him across his face as hard as she could. She sighed in relief, the anger from before leaving her, but Artemis blinked once in shock before pushing her down on the bed. He grabbed her wrist and pinned them to the bed, snapping the shackles on her around a wooden plank on the bed. Artemis grabbed her chin, making Holly look at him as she pulled against her bonds painfully, and spoke in a disturbingly calm tone.

"Let me remind you, Miss Short, that I am the abductor and you the abductee in this current situation." He told her mere inches away from her face. Holly stared up at him, not sure what to do or say. "And I do not have to be as nice, or compassionate as I have been towards you. Now I understand that you are a hostage negotiator, and that you may think you are building a rapport with me to earn my trust. However, do not get _that_ comfortable with me or I will be forced to act like this threatening tough jerk, which I do not want to." Artemis leaned back, helping Holly lay down on the bed. She still stared up at him with wide eyes when Artemis hung his head and sighed before running a hand through her hair. "I don't want to scare you, Holly. So don't make me do things I don't want to do."

Holly nodded hesitantly, still too shocked to say anything while she watched him walk back downstairs. Once he was gone, she took a huge sigh of relief, closing her eyes.

He was gone for a while, and even Holly got worried that he had left. She could admit, it wasn't the brightest idea to slap him, but the rage in her system had gotten the better of her. She felt better now, but was utterly nervous at the same time.

The handcuffs dug into her wrists when Artemis slapped them on so Holly tried her hardest not to move her hands that were bound above her. She looked up, the steel from her shackles cutting into her already red wrists.

Finally, Holly spotted Artemis' shadow start coming up the stairs and she let go of a breath she didn't know she was holding. "I'm sorry, Artemis."

There was a red mark on his cheek from Holly's hand that made her look down. He didn't say anything, sitting on the edge of the bed and putting the supplies he brought with him on the bedside table.

"Artemis…" Holly trailed off, not sure what to say. His eyes were burning, which, in turn, only made her eyes sting.

"We're even." He whispered, grabbing an ice pack and applying it to her leg, wrapping it in some bandages to make sure it would stay. "From this morning."

She nodded, swallowing thickly. "Okay." Holly whispered, trying to hold back a whimper when the handcuffs rubbed against her wounds.

Artemis' eyes flicked up to her wrists and he grabbed a tube of cooling solvent. "Here." He leaned forward and rubbed some on her sore wrists. "Feel better?" Holly closed her eyes, making a soft agreeing sound while nodding. "Good." Artemis let go of her wrists and wiped off his hands on a tissue. "Think you need the medicine?" He held up a little pill bottle, rattling it and raising a dark eyebrow at her. Holly shook her head, looking away. "Okay…" He stood up, walking back to the staircase.

"Where are you going?" Holly asked, lifting her head off the pillow to look up at him. "Work?"

He pointed to the stairs, "I'm sleeping on the couch."

Instantly, Holly felt guilty. "I can sleep on the couch."

Artemis rolled his eyes, "There's no place to tie you down."

"Oh...Right…" Holly looked at the empty side of the bed. "Can't you sleep up here?"

That made Artemis look back at her and cock his head, curious. "I...Didn't think you would want me up here...With you."

Holly made a failed attempt to shrug, daring to send a small grin his way in hopes to somehow patch the relationship between them. "I know you won't do anything to me."

That made Artemis look down, smiling at his own words repeated back to him. He nodded, "I'm taking a shower first." He told her, walking back around the bed to the opposite side of the room and opening a door, slipping into a smaller, well lit room.


	19. Chapter 19

**Been sort of busy the last few weeks with trips, but I'm focusing more and more on my writing. Im falling back in love with it! Just like there's a little falling in love in this chapter...Enjoy!**

It wasn't long before the bathroom door opened again and Holly had to rotate her head to the other side because the bright lights contrasted too much with the dim lights of the bedroom. Once Holly's eyes adjusted slowly to the blinding light, and the water on the edges of her eyes disappeared, she turned her head back over and stopped.

Artemis came out of the bathroom, beads of moisture that were fresh from the shower still clung to his bare chest. They defined the muscles Holly knew he had never had before, and almost made her disappointed when the rest of them disappeared behind the light gray sweatpants he was wearing. He was staring back at her with his clear blue eyes while he rubbed a towel back and forth through his wet hair in an attempt to dry it. After a minute of what had to be constant hair-pulling, Artemis draped the towel on the back of the door, his hair wild and messy-which only made Holly bite her bottom lip. "I hope you don't mind…" He started, closing the bathroom door and walking back over to the bed. "But I usually can only sleep dressed like this."

Holly nodded at him silently, trying to stop her mouth from falling open at the sight of his body. Artemis smirked at her and slid onto the mattress next to Holly, resting his back against the headboard. She looked up at him, not able to lift her own body much since her hands were still tied above her.

"Here…" Artemis leaned down, sliding his hands down both sides of her torso. Holly gasped, her eyes flicking up to him and widening while he cocked his head, fascinated. "Let me smooth this out for you." He looked back at her eyes, meeting them while he straightened her shirt and pulled it over her uncovered stomach. "It must have slipped up when I pinned you down before." He showed a canine while he smirked at her and Holly made herself look away, trying to force herself to start breathing normally again. Gods, what was wrong with her?

"Must have." She murmured, closing her eyes momentarily before glancing back over to him. Artemis had propped himself back on the headboard, crossing his ankles while he grabbed a book from the nightstand on his side. The small lamp next to him also on the table illuminated the words as he opened it and began reading silently. "What are you reading?" Holly asked quietly, trying to discreetly clear her throat. "How to defuse bombs?"

Artemis chuckled, glancing down at her. "I'm already an expert at that." He gloated, making Holly roll her eyes and smile at him. He liked her smile. His sudden thought about her made him shake his head, looking back at his book. "No...Believe it or not, this is a book about the supernatural."

"Really?" Holly raised an eyebrow at him. "I never would have thought you as the type to read something like that."

He shrugged, "Always fascinated me." Artemis explained, sighing. "Fairies, dwarves, ogres…You probably think I'm insane, or acting as a teenage girl, right?"

She shook her head, looking away again while she tried to hold the tears forming in her eyes at bay. It was so hard that he didn't know. "No." She whispered, "Not at all."

Artemis smiled, closing the book and putting it back on the table. "Perhaps I'll read some to you tomorrow." He offered. "I'll only be gone an hour, at most." Artemis paused, frowning when she didn't turn to face him. "Are you alright?"

Holly nodded, coughing to hold back a sniffle and forcing the tears to go away before she blinked up at her shackled hands. "Huh? Oh, yeah…" She tried to brush it off as quickly as she could. "Just relieved I won't have to be stuck on that hard floor all day."

He looked her over once more, knowing something was up and also knowing that he should find any means to force her to say what was wrong, but Artemis found that he couldn't for some strange reason. Usually, he was eager to gain information from people under his...Care. "Okay." He sighed, putting a hand under her back and helping her get under the sheets.

Holly closed her eyes, the warmth of his hand making her swallow thickly before moving away. She almost sighed at the loss, but caught and mentally scalded herself. Gods, what was wrong with her? Holly turned away from Artemis, resting her head on the pillow and staring at the door. She could already feel herself starting to drift off. It wasn't long before her eyes were closed and her breathing evened out.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Sunlight creeped through the tiny little cracks in the white blinds across the room, landing right in Holly's closed eyes. The warmth itself caused her to groan and crinkle her nose, beginning to wake up. She peeked her right eyes open first, letting it semi-adjust to the light before opening the other.

Her arms were sore from being in the same position all night, but it was only a dull pain. She laid her head back down on the pillow and looked back at Artemis.

She expected him to be on the other side of the bed, turned away from her and giving her space. But one slight movement of her body made her realize that Artemis wasn't on the other side of the bed, but rather right next to her. With his arm around her.

His whole body was pressed against her back, him spooning her than anything. Holly looked at his face, his eyes closed peacefully and his breathing even. Holly sighed, looking away and trying to cool down her face as it heated up. She could feel his strong, bare chest against her, and she had to take a deep breath to calm herself down.

Holly felt Artemis run his nose through her hair in his sleep, closing her eyes herself. He warmed her, his arm still draped over her stomach.

"Mm…" Artemis blinked his eyes awake, most likely from Holly's slight movements and him being a very light sleeper. "What time is it, Miss Short?"

Holly glanced at the clock sitting on the table next to her side of the bed. "Almost seven." She whispered, staring up at her shackled hands so that she didn't look back at him instead.

Artemis looked around and sighed, taking his arm off of her and sitting up. He rubbed the sleep out of his eyes before looking back down at her and frowning. "Why didn't you wake me up?" He asked, concerned.

"What?" She turned and dared herself to look up at him.

"Your arms." He replied, frowning and leaning over her to start untying her hands. "They've been in the same position all night. You should have woken me up when you started to feel uncomfortable."

Holly shook her head, looking up at her wrists and sighing a little with relief when they were let go, the handcuffs being put off to the side. She moved to put her arms down to the side, but Artemis kept his hold on them, keeping them still. Holly looked back up at Artemis, eyes wide.

Artemis looked down at her wrists and arms studying them. "Stay still…" He murmured, letting his grip go and moving to straddle her lap. Holly gasped, sitting up and yelping at the stiffness in her arms as they moved halfway down before she had to make herself stop. It hurt too much.

"Ooouuuch…." She groaned.

Artemis put his hands under her arms, raising an eyebrow at her. "And that would be why I told you to stay still. You're muscles and joints are stiff. It makes sense, since they weren't able to move all night." He kneaded his fingers up her arms, to her shoulders, and back down to her hands, making Holly wince. The genius slowly moved her arms down until they were loosely in her laps, his hands wrapped around her wrists. "Better?"

Holly nodded, looking up at him. She couldn't ignore his thighs straddling her lap, his body inches away from hers.

"I'm sorry for last night, again." He told Holly, looking down at her hands. Artemis ran his thumbs over the tops of her wrists. "For being a jerk, and scaring you."

She shook her head, a smile starting to drag on her lips. "I told you it's , you were right. I'm the hostage, and you have been very accommodating to me."

Artemis chuckled softly, almost a scoff. "You're very...Different, Miss Short."

Holly tilted her head, "How so?"

"Doesn't matter." Artemis answered, shaking his head and looking her in the eyes with a small smirk on his lips. Holly sighed, about to tell him that it did matter to her when the look in his crystal blue orbs staring at her made Holly stop. The breath got sucked out of her while Artemis leaned forward, the space between them getting smaller and smaller. He tilted his head, Artemis' lips almost a centimeter away from hers. Holly closed her eyes, waiting for him to-

 _Beep, beep, beep!_

Artemis pulled away, sighing and reaching over to turn off his alarm clock. "I should get to work." Holly nodded, watching Artemis get off of her. "How's your leg?" He asked, going to his dresser and putting on a black plain shirt.

Holly watched him stride into his bathroom, a pair of jeans in his hands. She was still partially stunned from him being so close only seconds before, his warmth from before leaving her feeling cold. "Oh, umm…" Holly looked down at her leg, moving it slightly. "Much better."

"Much better like last night?" Artemis called from the bathroom, walking out of the bathroom fully dressed. "When I had to carry you up the stairs?" She could feel her cheeks blushing and Holly looked away, Artemis nodding to the door. "Why didn't you try to run?"

"You locked it." Holly replied, cocking her head and crossing her arms. "You aren't very trustful, are you?"

A shrug came from his shoulders, and the genius pushed off the wall with one foot. "In my line of work, there are two rules." Artemis looked back at her, a smirk flashing on his face and making Holly shiver. "Don't be late, and never trust anyone."

Holly rolled her eyes, standing up from the bed. "I don't suppose I can run on this leg, though." She tested it out, walking a few paces and nodding. "At least it's not throbbing in pain anymore."

Artemis smiled, taking her arm. "That's good. I'll get some bandages and wrap it so you can have more mobility and it will heal faster." He stared at her injured knee.

"Oh, you want me able to walk?" Holly raised an eyebrow and smirked slightly back at him as they went to the door, Artemis' hand firmly around her arm still.

He sighed, shaking his head and frowning at her, concerned. "I'm not a sadist, Miss Short. I do not wish pain amongst anyone unless I am ordered to."

"Keep talking, Artemis." She replied, reaching the bottom step on his spiral staircase. "It's just getting me closer and closer to figuring out what you really are."

Artemis laughed, taking her to his office and making her sit on the floor. "I really doubt you will, Miss Short."

Holly smiled at his laugh, letting him lock her wrists behind her. "Won't stop me from guessing." However, the smile slipped a bit when Artemis stood up and walked to the door. "Hey, don't your hostages get breakfast in the morning?" Holly raised an eyebrow at him.

He turned around, one hand on the doorframe. "I'll be back with lunch in a few hours. I don't have any work today, thankfully."

She sighed, her question not answered while Artemis closed the door, leaving Holly alone. Holly rested her head against the cold, hard metal behind her head.

 _At least he didn't gag me this time..._


	20. Chapter 20

**Hey guys,**

 **Little Authors note before I begin the chapter. Basically just to say Im back, and explain what has happened.**

 **Plainly, I started college. And I have been extremely busy since the term began that I havent had much time to write. But there was also something else that stopped me a while ago, when I had the time.**

 **When I started writing, I did it for fun. I loved creating stories and hearing back from you guys. But after 3 years, it wasnt so much fun anymore as it was more of a job. I considered it work, and I hated it.**

 **That's why I took a hiatus, and why it's been so long. I have more stories coming up, including this one Butler story that definitely explains him just a little bit more.**

 **~KellyCat**

Chapter 20:

Holly thanked Frond that Artemis told the truth about not taking too long today, because she felt as though she was going crazy just sitting there, staring at the wall. Just when she thought she couldn't take much longer, and she was going to begin screaming her head off, the door opened on the right and Artemis strode in. "Oh, thank the Gods."

He glanced at her with a strange look on his face, setting down multiple bags on his desk. "Bored?" He asked.

"Insanely." Holly nodded. She sighed when Artemis kneeled down next to her. "So, are you going to let me out or not?"

Artemis clicked his tongue, pretending to think while Holly started to squirm where she sat on the floor. "Well…" He drawled out. "Are you going to be a good girl and behave?"

That made Holly roll her eyes at him. "Am I going to bite you?" She replied, then shrugged. "Maybe, if you don't let me out soon." She smirked up at him.

Artemis scoffed and grinned slightly at her. "Watch it, Short." He warned, reaching behind her and unlocking the handcuffs. The man grabbed her wrists and brought them forward. "You don't want to get in trouble."

Holly sighed, watching Artemis take his tie off, but he paused before he wrapped the thick cloth around her red wrists. "What's wrong?" She asked, unsure why he stopped and nervous about what he was thinking of.

His eyes flicked up, to hers after another moment of staring at her hands, and Artemis sucked his teeth softly. "I do not wish to feed you right now." He spoke carefully and slowly, as though he was afraid he would trip over his own words and get in trouble for saying something wrong. "This is my day off, and...Your wrists need to breathe" Artemis sighed, taking the tie away from her wrists, getting up, and going back to his desk-his back to her.

Holly smiled, pushing herself up and rolling back her shoulders to try and loosen them. "Thanks, Artemis."

"Oh, don't think I'm going soft on you, Holly." Artemis grabbed his bag, taking out the knife he showed Holly the night before. "One toe out of line, one unauthorized step towards the door, and I will slap the handcuffs on your wrists so hard, I will draw blood." He turned towards her, a dark, serious expression on his face. "I will lock you somewhere where you will never see daylight again. Understand?"

Holly nodded silently, and Artemis sighed, running his hand through the ebony locks on his head. "I don't want to hurt you, Holly." He whispered sincerely, walking towards her. Holly's eyes flicked up and down from Artemis' face to the dangerous weapon in his hand. She stepped into the file cabinet with a sharp _clang._ "So don't do anything that would force my hand." Artemis put the knife to her throat in a silent threat, almost making Holly whimper the tiniest bit. "Understood?"

This time, Holly didn't nod or move her head. She couldn't, not with the cold, sharp steel against her throat. She just swallowed thickly, wide eyes looking into his calm, cool, and collected ones. "Understood." She replied breathlessly, almost trembling.

Artemis let her go, walking over towards the door. Holly fell forwards, her hand going around her throat in the absence of his knife, gasping out the breath she was holding in. "Come on, Short." He impatiently sighed from the opened door.

Holly looked up at him, hands on her knees to prop herself up "So…" She nearly rasped, her voice coming back to her slowly. "I'm guessing you're not a doctor."

He scoffed, the edge of his mouth only turning up a little bit. "If you don't start doing what I say, I'll have to show you my cutting skills." He told her, cocking his head and gleaming the tip of his knife in the sun towards her.

Holly stood up, taking a deep breath and narrowing her eyes at him. "A simple no would have been enough." She quipped, joining him at the exit. "Now, I'm starved." She headed to the kitchen in the next room.

Artemis followed her closely, watching every little moment she made. "I didn't know what else you could have, being a vegetarian, so I grabbed salad."

She hopped up into a barstool at him island, looking over Artemis. He looked stressed out and tense. "That's fine." She replied, propping her elbows on the island. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing."

Holly pursed her lips skeptically at him. "Come on, Artemis. You're only a tightass when there's something wrong." She leaned forward, grinning. "Where's your bubbly personality?"

Artemis sighed at her, leaning over the island back at her and coming almost nose to nose with Holly. "Holly, I have never so much as looked at a prisoner before. Nevermind talked, fed, and let one loose."

"Don't forget kiss." Holly shot back, then sighed. "Artemis, just tell me what happened. Who am I gonna tell?"

He looked down, scoffing and thinking at the cool marble. "It's just...A lot of pressure on me right now." Artemis met her eyes, his own gleaming slightly and he grinned. "And I'm trusting you a lot right now. I've never done this."

"I know." She whispered, leaning forward and brushing her hand lightly against his cheek. "Thank you."

"Mm, I also spent half the time I was away upgrading my security system." He told her. "You need to use a keycard, pin, and a retina scan to get out."

Holly shook her head, raising an eyebrow. "You have trust issues." She stated, sitting back in her seat.

Artemis shrugged, grabbing a box and sliding it towards her. "Perhaps. However, you will hear no more threats from me unless you actually do something wrong."

"Promise?"

Artemis looked her over, taking a bite of his food. "What?"

Holly looked him up and down, smirking. "I want to positively know that you will not threaten me anymore today. Understand?" She played slightly mocking him.

Thankfully, he took the humor in her words and chuckled. "Understood." He replied, "And I promise. Now eat." Artemis gestured towards the food in front of her.

She looked down at the box and opened it, grabbing a fork and spearing it into her salad. She was starving, opening her mouth and chewing the leafy greens she put in her mouth. "You know, usually I hate your people thinking that we only eat salad all day. There are plenty of foods that I can have that aren't meat." Holly muttered into her food.

Artemis raised an eyebrow at her words, picking slowly at his own lunch. "My people?"

"What?" Holly looked up with wide, innocent eyes. Then she finally realized what she insinuated the moment before and paused. She was talking about the People versus humans. "O-Oh, you know, Vegetarians and Carnivores."

He chuckled at that. "Mm.." He held up a finger in between his bites, swallowing the mouthful of food he had. "I haven't had meat since that Ham sandwich the other day, thank you very much. I could live without it."

"No, you couldn't." Holly protested, sitting back in her seat and crossing her arms over her chest.

"Yes, I coul-"

"No. You. Could. Not." Holly shook her head, enunciating every word and grinning at him. Even Artemis had a smirk on his face. "And you know it, Artemis."

"And why is that?" He challenged, leaning against the island towards her.

Holly cocked her head at him, a surge of knowledge running through her veins. "Because you like control." She whispered, looking down at her food and breaking eye contact with him. Holly didn't know how he would react to her summary of him. She rested her elbows on the counter and nestled her chin in her cupped hands. "And...for some people, eating meat is just another way of showing that dominance. Especially in males like you."

"Like me?"

Holly looked down even more, staring at the glistening lettuce leaves. She knew she shouldn't be saying things like this that could possible piss him off, but once she opened her mouth on the subject, the rest came tumbling out. "You know, alpha males. It's your way or no way."

Artemis could feel the tension rippling off of her and crooked a finger under his chin, forcing Holly to look up into his pale blue eyes again slowly. "And there's that hostage negotiator psych crap that I find crawls under my skin." The edge of his mouth twitched up just a bit.

"It's true." She breathed in protest.

Holly felt his thumb run up and down her jawline slowly, her arms falling limply to the black and white marble counter as they held their intense gaze. "Mm, you should tell my bosses that." He told her.

"So, I'm guessing you're not in contracting either." Holly mused, smirking at him and hoping that the witty banter would mess with the tension between them.

It worked, and Artemis let go of her chin-not that Holly couldn't pull away at her own will. He sighed, standing back up straight and fixing the imaginary wrinkles he found on his black t-shirt. "Are you done?" He asked.

Holly stared blankly at the man in front of her, trying to figure out if he was insulted by her before realizing he was talking about her food. She looked down at the salad, and her stomach twisted. Suddenly, those few bites she had were a bit too much for her. "Uh, yeah." She murmured, pushing the styrofoam box away from her. "I'm done with it."

Artemis nodded, taking hers and closing it before doing the same with his and stuffing them in the fridge aimlessly. "Alright, onto the next part of why I let you out." He sighed, looking back at her. "And you aren't going to like it."

A strange feeling came over Holly, and she knew something was going to happen. "What?" She drawled out, looking at the genius in front of her skeptically.

"I'll give you a hint." he grabbed from behind the counter and set two bottles in front of her. Holly ran her thumb over the letters at the bottom of the bottle.

"Shampoo?" She asked, then moved to the second bottle. "Conditioner? What, a shower? Why wouldn't I want a show-oh…." It finally clicked in her head, and her eyes widened. "Oh..Hell...No."

 **Review please! I love hear back from y'all!**


	21. Chapter 21

**Before people start freaking out, a warning. This is where the T part comes into play. Dont like, dont read.**

Artemis sighed, shaking his head. "Short, don't freak out."

Holly stood up, crossing her arms over her chest defensively. "Don't freak out?" She scoffed. "You're asking me to be undressed in another room with you right outside-"

"Actually I will be in the room with you." Artemis sighed as he told her. "There are...Too many things that can be used as a weapon against me in there."

She shook her head, slowly looking up at the man in front of her with a dumbfounded look. "No." She told him plainly. "Why would you even think that I would go along with that?"

Artemis leaned against the counter, looking Holly straight in her eyes with a dead serious look in his. "Because…" He stated, tilting his head. "If you don't, you'll be locked to the cabinet in my office again."

She narrowed her eyes at him, challenging the genius silently. Holly definitely did not want to go back in his office. She started to feel claustrophobic already, thinking about being in that small room again. Holly stared at him for another moment more before sighing and bowing her head, giving in. "Fine." She sighed, snatching the bottles off of the counter. She hopped off the stool and glared at Artemis as she walked to the bathroom across the kitchen. "But you're staying on the entirely opposite side of the room, alright?"

"Agreed." Artemis nodded, leaning on the table and looking her up and down.

Holly rolled her eyes when she saw him. She knew he was just trying to tick her off, and she tried to fend off what came to her mind, but in the end she couldn't. "See? This is why I don't trust you. I can't trust you."

Artemis chuckled, "Have I done anything to you?"

She backed into the bathroom, keeping her eyes straight on Artemis. "Besides locking me to a cabinet, kissing me against my will, tying me up and not letting me go? And the fact that you are looking at me like a hungry animal doesn't help. Hmm, I wonder why I can't trust you."

That made Artemis smirk, "Well it doesn't seem as though you have a choice in the matter at the moment, Short."

"Unbelievable." Holly scoffed, looking away at the mirror.

"Be that as it may," Artemis started, closing the bathroom door behind him and leaning against it with his arms crossed. "You're just stalling, so I suggest that you get in the blithering shower and get this over with quicker."

Holly looked him over, raising an eyebrow at Artemis. _Blithering?_ She thought. That sounded vaguely like Artemis Fowl. More European than New York. "Fine." Holly backed away, stepping over the porcelain rim and clutching the dark curtain hanging above her. "But you stay over there."

Artemis raised his hands in a nonthreatening manner, still leaning against the door. "I won't move." He promised, "Unless, of course-"

"No." Holly cut him off. "No 'unless.' You stay _there._ " She pulled the curtain shut, making a barrier between them.

Artemis saw clothes being thrown out of the side of the shower and out of the way, and the water started. He slowly slid down the door, sitting on the wall with his arm resting on his knee. "So...You're a cop."

He heard a huff from behind the shower curtain. "First of all, I believe that has already been established. And second, you really think that this is a good time to talk?!" She practically hissed her second point.

"Why not?" Artemis shrugged, tilting his head back and resting his head against the door. "Isn't this what you want? To talk and build even more of a rapport with me?" He smirked. "Oh, I get it. It's not fun if I know you're doing your insane psyho-babble to me."

Holly sighed, "Fine. What do you want to know?"

"Nothing I won't know when your record gets back to me." Artemis grabbed a bar of soap from under the sink and threw it up in the air, catching it while he thought. "Why did you become a cop in the first place?"

 _Trust issues_ flashed through Holly's mind as he reminded her about the record coming in. That concerned her even more, knowing that Artemis' superiors were this mysterious force of...Well, whatever the hell he was. From what she could tell, they had resources that most people on top of the world didn't. "It's a long story." She told him, pausing as she thought about why she became an LEP officer in the first place.

"We have time." Artemis looked over the wrapping, just to do something. He was half paying attention to Holly and half thinking about his work. There were a million things for him to do tomorrow, and everyone was on his back about it.

Holly thought for another moment, staring down the drain blankly. "I had a friend." She started, biting her lip. Holly knew she was lying, and at this point, she didn't care. "He was...The stupidest, most idiotic...Bravest...Smartest person I ever knew."

"Stupid and smart?" Artemis smirked, "That is quite a paradox, Miss Short."

She huffed, "Shut up, Artemis." But Holly was smiling, leaning against the cold tiles next to her. "I failed him, a long time ago. We...Hadn't seen each other in years, and I was the only real friend he had.." Holly trailed off, closing her eyes and sighing. Just talking through all of it was hard.

Artemis raised an eyebrow, "What are you getting at?" His focus turned fully to her, wondering where Holly was going with this.

"He died." Holly breathed after an extremely big breath. "He died alone, and helpless…"

Artemis looked down. "I'm..Terribly sorry, Holly." He put the bar of soap back on the sink, standing up. Something inside of him was pulling at Artemis, and he hated that he couldn't figure out why he was so bothered with it. Usually he was stone-cold about things like this, which he heard a lot more than he wanted. "Did you ever find out what happened?"

"No." Holly shut off the water, a tear dripping down her cheek and mixing with the puddle of water at her feet. All of it disappeared down the drain and Holly held back a soft sniffle, tuning and grabbing a towel to start drying off.

Artemis pursed his lips. "That's why you became an officer."

"Yeah." Holly scoffed, shaking her head. "Sure. Let's go with that." She wrapped the towel around herself, tucking it under her arms to secure it. "I'm guessing you have clothes for me?"

He looked back at the shower, unable to see her still because of the curtain between them. "They are on the back of the toilet." He informed her, knowing she would want some privacy for that. Artemis looked around one final time, making a mental list of everything in the small room that Holly could use to harm him. "I'll give you a minute to get dressed." Artemis said, "After those 60 seconds, I will be forced to assume you are planning something against me and to bust the door down." Artemis opened the bathroom door, taking a step out. "You're time starts now."

Holly rolled her eyes. What did he think, that this was a game?

If he was still Artemis...Of course he did.

Half the time hadn't even passed when Holly opened the bathroom door slowly, fully dressed in the t-shirt and shorts Artemis had given her to wear. The man himself was sitting on a barstool, raising an eyebrow at the door and looking Holly over for a weapon. He nodded the slightest bit when Artemis realized she didn't have anything. "Feel better?"

Holly nodded, running her fingers through her hair to separate it and get the knots out. "Thanks."

Artemis smiled, looking over her hair as her hands went through it. It was a dark burgandy, instead of the flaming red that it was normally. He looked down suddenly, blinking as he trained his thoughts back to her actions and body language instead of how her body looked at the moment. "Put your hands out." He ordered, taking a tie out of his pocket.

Holly looked up at him, frowning. She most definitely did not want to be restrained again, but it wasn't as though she could argue with Artemis. "Why?" She argued, taking a wary step back as she looked Artemis up and down to study his own body language. Was he serious? "You said you weren't going to do this."

He raised an eyebrow at her opposition. She still didn't understand that she didn't have a choice in any of this. "I am exhausted, Short." He sighed, "This is just to make me feel more comfortable. Now, put your hands out in front of you."

Holly closed her eyes and shook her head. "Fine." She conceded, putting her wrists together in front of her. Holly didn't open her eyes when she felt the soft fabric wrap around them, and she winced the slightest bit when Artemis tightened them.

Even if it was the smallest movement Holly could possibly make, Artemis' trained eye still caught it. "Come on." He told her softly, hooking a finger in the tie and leading her into another room.

He guided her to an L shaped, deep red couch in front of a brick fireplace and television in his apartment. A dark brown coffee table that Holly immediately recognized as maple was in front of the couch, and a black carpet covered the floor. Holly sat down on the couch, looking up at Artemis with wide hazel eyes.

"You can sit back." He assured her, sitting on the opposite end of the couch and crossing his arms over his chest, "Relax."

Holly nodded, scooting back silently and leaning into the red upholstery. "Now it's your turn."

"I can never be fully relaxed around you, Holly. You know that."

"I didn't mean to relax." She stated, resting her bound hands into her lap. "I meant...I told you a personal story. You should tell me one."

Artemis pursed his lips and scrunched his eyebrows, confused. "How was I supposed to get that?"

"Just answer the question."

He sighed again, thinking. "I don't...Really have that many stories." He objected, shaking his head. "Not that I can share, at least."

Holly looked at him skeptically. She was trying anything to get something out of the Mud Man to piece together something. "You must have some strange story from your childhood you can tell me."

"That's my point." Artemis leaned forward on his elbows, running a hand through his ebony hair. "I don't remember my childhood."

Holly rolled her eyes. "You don't have to lie, Artemis."

Artemis cocked his head at her, "I'm not." He insisted, "I am serious. I don't remember anything before I was in my teens."

"Isn't that scary?" Holly was working what he said through her head.

He thought for a second before slowly shaking his head again. "Not the way I was brought up after that."

 _Mysterious…_ Holly bit her lip, cogs still moving in his head. "Well, I guess that's a story in and of itself."

Artemis smirked gently over at her, sitting back again. "Yeah, I guess so."

Holly looked down and smiled a little before clearing her throat, her hands going up to massage her throat. "Can I have a glass of water?"

"Of course." Artemis nodded, getting up. He straightened out his shirt. "I'll be right back."

As soon as Artemis disappeared around the corner to the next room, Holly sat up and looked around. What was going on? Was he really telling the truth that he didn't remember anything? That would help explain why he went by James instead of Fowl anymore. But how did he forget?

Holly put her head in her hands just as Artemis walked back in, a large glass with water in his hand. "Do you have a headache?"

Her head shot up, but it wasn't as though he could read her thoughts. "Oh! Uh, no." Holly blushed, looking away.

Artemis nodded, "Here." He sat down in front of her on the couch, holding out the glass for Holly. He waited until both of her hands were wrapped around it before letting go.

Holly lifted the glass to her lips and looked up at Artemis while she took a sip. "Thank you." She sighed when she was done, handing back the glass.

Artemis smirked, reaching up and wiping a drop of water from her chin. He looked Holly in the eyes while doing so and only broke it when he turned around to set the glass on the coffee table. "I have a question for you." He stated, glancing back over his shoulder at Holly.

Holly sat back in the corner of the couch, hands back in her lap. "Shoot."

"Can I kiss you?" He asked plainly.

Holly blinked for a second, processing. "Wh-What?"

"I don't know why, but I want to." Artemis looked her over, putting his hands on the couch on each side of her and leaning forward. "And considering I already have without your permission, I do not wish to do that to you again. So," He smirked, whispering. "Can I...Kiss you?"

She glanced up at him, trying to breathe evenly. For a minute she thought Artemis was kidding, but when her eyes looked into his blue ones she could tell he wasn't. "Yes" Holly breathed.

Artemis leaned forward, tilting his head and pressing his lips softly against hers. Holly sighed, her eyes fluttering close. Her heart was pounding in her chest.

A moment later, Artemis pulled away only an inch. He looked at Holly with hooded eyes. He bit his lip while Holly blinked up at him "Wow…"

"Yeah," He breathed, and the next things Holly knew, he was kissing her again. This one was much different, as he kissed her deeper and stronger than the one before.

Holly kissed him back, tilting her head up and leaning into Artemis' body. Her entire body tingled when Artemis reached up and cradled the back of her neck with his hand.

"What are we doing?" Holly gasped for breath when Artemis' lips left hers to trail down her neck. "Oh, Artemis…"

Artemis sat back, smirking as he reached out and ran a hand through Holly's hair. "Come on." He told her, standing up and holding out his hand.

Holly paused for a moment, staring up at Artemis as she thought about what she was just about to do. Slowly, she reached up and took his hand with one of her bound ones and Artemis helped her up. With his other hand, Artemis tilted her head up to him and kissed her deeply, working her lips.

She didn't feel like it was her walking up the stairs, humming her laughter and wrapping her arms around his neck as she walked backwards into his room.

Artemis moaned softly, arms wrapping around her waist as they kissed. He tilted her head back and dipped his tongue into her mouth smoothly. Holly moaned back, her breathing ragged and she yelped as she fell back on the bed, Artemis on top of her.

Holly gasped, her eyes wide and arms raised above her head. "Are you going to untie me now?" She asked, holding out her hands for him.

He smirked, holding up a finger silently to tell her to wait and stood up, walking over to the bedroom door to close and lock it with a key. Artemis held up the key for Holly to see and put it in his bedside table drawer, using a code to lock that as well.

Holly scoffed and shook her head, grinning at Artemis as he turned back to her. "You have trust issues." She laughed and Artemis leaned over her, hands slowly moving up her arms.

"I know." Her breathed against her lips, kissing her passionately.

 **Review please!**


	22. Chapter 22

**I know. I've been gone. But Im back. Maybe not for good, but here is the next chapter.**

Holly's eyes cracked open the next morning, and she was surprised when she didn't feel the usual ties or handcuffs around her wrists. She sighed calmly, her eyes blinking sleepily as she nuzzled her head against the pillow and then paused. She could feel her hair moving against her bare back, but more importantly, she could feel Artemis' chest against it as well.

Holly sighed again, her eyes blinking slowly as she thought back to the night before. It was incredible, being with him, but it also made her stomach turn. Gods, what had she done?

Artemis groaned beside her and Holly's eyes immediately slammed shut. His grip around her waist tightened as he sighed and sat up, pushing her hair back.

"There's really no point of faking it, you know." He smirked, running his nose down her neck.

Holly bit her lip, looking down and nodding. Who was she trying to trick? This was Artemis Fowl, after all. "What, I don't get a good morning?" She murmured, still not looking up at him. Holly was still trying to process everything that had happened that night.

"Good morning," Artemis replied, grinning and pulling her closer to his body. He wrapped the sheets around their entangled bodies. "Well...that escalated quickly," he sighed.

She scoffed softly, shaking her head. "You think?" Holly turned to face him. "Artemis, last night was—"

"A mistake," he finished for her, "I know. And it's my fault, I just…" Artemis shrugged, brushing a strand of hair out of her eyes. "I don't know what came over me last night."

"I…" Holly paused, sighing and thinking over what she was going to say. "I don't know either." She pulled away from Artemis and sat up, frowning as thoughts of regret invaded her mind.

Artemis sat up with her, putting his hand on her shoulder from behind her. "I enjoyed last night," he told her, running his other hand through his hair.

Holly paused again, looking down at the white sheets fisted in her hands and around her body. "Me too," she whispered almost silently, and shook her head.

"Hey…" He leaned over, pulling her closer and kissing her neck.

She nearly whimpered and leaned into him, feeling the goosebumps rise on her skin as his soft lips glided over the tender muscles in her neck. "Artemis…" she breathed, her eyes fluttering close.

Artemis hummed against her neck gently, his arms wrapping around her stomach and pulling her against him. He enjoyed himself, feeling her and teasing her delicate skin. That was, until he opened his eyes and noticed the time on the alarm clock next to the bed. He pulled away immediately, jumping up off the bed. "Shit!"

Holly opened her eyes, startled. She watched Artemis as he got dressed, frowning. "What's wrong?"

"I'm late," he explained hurriedly, throwing one of his shirts in her direction and rushing over to the bathroom.

Holly nodded slowly, looking back at him as he raced around the room, getting ready. She pulled on the oversized shirt, almost a dress on her, and hopped off the bed. She stretched, closing her eyes and sighing. Hopping off the bed, she stretched her arms up as she squeezed her eyes shut.

Her eyes flew open when Artemis' hands gripped around her wrists, pulling them behind her. Holly looked back at him, giving him a quizzical look. "What are you doing?" she asked, tugging slightly against his grip.

Artemis just raised an eyebrow, fully clothed in a suit and black tie. "Putting you back downstairs," he explained, gripping her wrists with one hand while the other got the key for the room.

"You're tying me back up?" she asked, furious and struggling against his hand. It was fruitless, however, because of his newfound strength.

With a sigh and an eyeroll, Artemis unlocked his bedroom door and started to drag her down the spiral staircase. He knew she was going to pitch a fit, but he didn't have time for it right now. "Yes," he grunted when Holly kicked his leg. Artemis didn't fall over or let go of her, however, and practically carried her into his study.

He sat her down in his chair, grabbing some handcuffs and pulling her hands behind her back so he could secure her to the chair. "So, what?" Holly nearly snarled, giving up on struggling against him. She knew it was just a waste of her strength and energy. "After kissing me and everything else that happened last night, I'm still getting treated the same?"

"Pretty much," he answered with a shrug, making sure she could get out before standing back up straight and grabbing a bag from under his desk. "I don't have time to sit here and debate with you right now, Miss Short."

"And we're back to that." Holly shook her head, scoffing. "You bastard." She glared at him, struggling once more against her binds for emphasis. If she could strangle him right now, she would.

"Good bye," he sighed, shaking his head. He headed out the door, leaving her there.

"Artemis!"

Artemis paused, looking back at her with a thoughtful look for a moment. Holly frowned, biting her lip as she watched him. To say she was mad was an understatement that anyone could see, but she was also hurt.

He blinked, looking over at Holly, before walking over again. That caught Holly's attention and her eyes widened a fraction, looking at the man as he walked over and: Shut the computer screen down on the desk.

Artemis looked at her, smirking slightly at the shocked look on her face. He rested his arm on the edge of the screen, looking down at her. "Wouldn't want you peeking at anything that might pop up," he explained, his eyes glancing over her up and down.

Artemis walked out of the room seconds later, sure that the woman captive in there was plotting to kill him. If she hadn't been already. He could still hear her shouting curses at him through the thick walls of his study as he opened his front door and walked out, locking it tightly behind him.

And honestly? She was pretty imaginative. He had no idea what a "wart on a swear toad's ass" was, or why he wasn't even good enough to be one, but Artemis was pretty sure it wasn't good at all.

 **Tell me what you think! More reviews = faster updates!**


	23. Chapter 23

**I'm not going to explain myself. Just enjoy.**

Hours later, Holly gave up struggling. She slumped back into Artemis' office chair with a sigh and tilted her head, letting her cheek rest against the cold, wrinkled pleather.

So, she was stuck here. Again. Back where she started, even after everything that happened last night.

But honestly, could she imagine anything different? Knowing how Artemis acted and treated her, it was almost unbelievable that he didn't chain her up after…

Gods, they had had sex! Holly bit her lip as she thought about last night. She had sex with a mud man. She scoffed. Maybe Stockholm Syndrome was setting in. But Holly couldn't dwell on that for too long. Her entire body shivered when she thought about being with him. Not in a bad way, either. Just remembering everything that happened, right down to the taste of his lips against hers.

Holly shook her head. Maybe last night was good, but this morning it was like talking to an entirely different person. He tied her up again, and she couldn't keep the smirk that had been on his face when he left her there out of her head. And leaving her alone all day with her hands tied behind her back? Holly could feel them tingling because they had fallen asleep. Gods, where was the trust she was trying to develop with him?

Holly had calmed down from her fuming a little by the time Artemis got back by the end of the day. Still tied to the black — hopefully pleather — office chair, she heard the door to his suite open outside of the room she was trapped in. However, he didn't directly come and see her. Holly had learned that trying to get out of her bonds were fruitless hours before, but she still made another attempt to struggle against them. There was no doubt in her mind that her bonds had chaffed and scratched her wrists by now.

Artemis walked in a few minutes later, an icepack against his shoulder and his hair messy and wild. Definitely not the way he left there with it. Holly stared at him, giving him a concerned look for a second before remembering she was mad and looking away.

That didn't mean that Artemis didn't catch the glance at him. He raised an eyebrow, putting the icepack down and perching himself against the edge of his desk. He gave her a quick up and down before sighing. "I have a feeling you don't want to talk to me," he told her.

Holly rolled her eyes, shaking her head and refusing to look at him. Petty and childish as it may be, she had sat there fuming about him all day.

Artemis ran a hand through his wild, ebony locks, nodding. "Holly, I need you to understand that I'm only doing what I think is best for both of us." When no response came, Artemis continued. "I'm just trying to make you comfortable while making sure that I follow guidelines."

"I'm pretty sure there are no rulebook for keeping a hostage," Holly scoffed bitterly. "And, even if there were, I'm pretty sure that taking advantage of a hostage like the way you did isn't in it."

"Fair enough," he replied, happy enough that she was talking to him a lot sooner than he had thought she would. He left the desk and knelt down next to the chair she was in. "But you really think I took advantage of you?"

Holly didn't see him move, but could feel his presence closer to her. She blinked silently for a moment, biting her lip, before shaking her head. "No," she whispered. "But you still hurt me this morning — and you know it."

Artemis took a deep breath to calm and center himself. He knew she was right. He had hurt her. He desperately wanted to chalk it up to his training to feed off of hurting others, but he couldn't bring himself to say it out loud.

"I do know," he replied quietly and simply. "I apologize for that. That is something… something that I need to work on. And, at least for now, I can't guarantee it won't happen again." He stood up, looking at her. "Do you forgive me?"

Holly still hadn't looked at him, not having enough nerve to. "I don't know, Artemis." She rolled her shoulder, trying to encourage blood flow. "You just said you might do it again. Why should I trust you again?"

"You don't have to trust me," Artemis pointed out, leaning over her chair and pushing her hair behind her ear, making Holly shiver and take in a sharp breath. "I'm not someone who can be trusted. But I can promise you, if you forgive me, I can make it worth your while."

"I'm not interested," Holly protested stubbornly.

Artemis cocked his head gently. "You're not?" he murmured in a soft tone, and Holly could feel his warm breath against her skin. "That's surprising, because your body language is telling me a completely different story."

She shook in pure anticipation and anxiety. She knew he had the upper hand, but Holly couldn't let him win. "Artemis, please—"

"So, you're saying," Artemis cut her off, leaning over so she could see him and look him in the eyes, "that you don't want to kiss me right now?"

Holly tried to turn her head away, but Artemis ran his hand through her hair, grasping it loosely and keeping her still. "Tell me," he insisted. "Tell me that you don't want to kiss me right now, and I'll leave you alone."

Her heart raced in her chest as she looked at him, her breathing shallow. Holly found that she could only get two words through her lips in a breathless fashion. "Untie me."

Artemis nodded slightly and his heart sunk. He got up and reached in his pocket to grab a key. "Alright," he murmured, reaching in the back of the office chair with both of his hands and unchaining her wrists. He looked away from her, leaning up slowly, when Holly's hands grabbed his hair and brought him down to her lips.

She kissed him slowly, her mouth melding with his sensually. It didn't take but a second for Artemis to kiss her back, leaning forward and pressing her against the chair while his hands moved down her sides to her hips.

He pushed away after a second, pulling one of her hands out of his hair and helping her up. "I think perhaps you've seen enough of this office today," he murmured, kissing her lips gently and briefly before leading her out of the room.

Holly nodded and followed him silently, the burning sensation of their kiss still tingling on her lips. She felt as though she needed more to soothe the pain on her mouth, but it would only satisfy her for a second. Artemis led her out to the sitting room, pulling her around and pressing her against the back of the dark maroon couch. Holly looked up at him with wide hazel eyes before their lips met again, Artemis tilting her head back and kissing her deeply.

Holly couldn't hold back a moan as Artemis kept kissing her deeply, running a hand up her thigh slowly. She pulled him close and began tugging off his dark jacket.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

Holly rested her head against Artemis' chest, looking up at him. They were laying down on his rug, the fireplace alive right next to them and casting a soft glow over both of their faces. There was a dark blanket thrown over both of them, and Artemis had grabbed a few pillows for them to lay on.

Artemis looked down at her, smiling gently when he caught her looking back at him. He chuckled and took a sip of water out of a glass next to him, grabbing a strawberry and feeding it to her. Holly sighed, chewing the fruit and swallowing it before she spoke. "So...are you a lawyer?"

Artemis scoffed, giving her a look of disbelief. "We're back to that?" he asked, shaking his head and smirking a little bit. He sighed and settled back. "No, I'm not."

Holly sat up, looking down at him. She opened up her mouth to speak again, but Artemis cut her off.

"Look," Artemis put an arm in back of his head, his eyes scanning her up and down. Like he was sizing her up. "I'll make you a deal."

She raised an eyebrow at him, wrapping the blanket around her. "What did you have in mind?"

"I'll give you… three more tries to get what I do for a living right." He sat up with her, running a hand up her arm. "And, if you don't get it, you stop pestering me about it."

"And if I get it right?" Holly cocked her head, looking into his blue eyes intensely.

Another scoff escaped his lips. "On the very slim chance you actually get it right…" He smirked,then added, "before midnight — so in the next hour — I won't tie you down when I leave tomorrow."

Holly blinked silently, thinking. "Are you serious?" she whispered.

"Yes." He nodded, running a hand through his hair. "But remember. You have an hour, and three chances to get it right." The smirk didn't leave his lips as he got up, putting on his boxers and going to the kitchen. "I should count that lawyer comment, but I'm not."

Holly grabbed his shirt, pulling it around her. She got up. "Are you a bodyguard?"

Artemis turned back around to face her, leaning on the counter and taking another sip of fresh water. "Nope." He gave her a sinister look, which sent chills down her spine. She walked over to him quietly and slowly, looking him over thoughtfully. "That's one."

Holly nodded, taking the glass from him and taking a drink of water. She set the glass on the counter, reaching up and running a hand down the side of his face. Artemis kept calm, his eyes not leaving hers. Holly leaned up, kissing him briefly and sweetly before pulling away. She looked around the suite.

"You obviously have some money," she deduced, crossing her arms over her chest as thoughts raced through her mind. "And you did wear a suit the other day." Holly raised an eyebrow at him. "Are you a business owner?"

He tsked, pushing away from the counter and walking towards her. "I don't think I would have to worry about being late if I was a business owner. Good try, though, but not good enough." Artemis shrugged. "That's two. Might I suggest waiting and really thinking before guessing again?"

Holly's eyes flicked up to him and he wrapped an arm around her. "Fine," she murmured, resting a hand on his chest. "I was thinking about taking a shower anyway. Maybe this time I'll let you join me."

0o0o0o0o0o0o

Holly was ringing out her hair after the shower, up in Artemis' room. She was already dressed in a tanktop and shorts, and Artemis was dressed for bed as well. He was in the bathroom getting ready.

Artemis came out when Holly finished running the white towel through her damp hair. He pointed at a digital clock by his bed with his toothbrush, smirking. "Two more minutes until midnight."

Holly looked at the clock in disbelief. Their shower took that long? "Artemis…"

He shook his head. "Oh, no. A deal's a deal. One more chance, two minutes." He glanced back at the sleek, black clock on the bedstand. "One minute now."

Taking a deep breath, Holly looked down thoughtfully. She blinked twice. "Fine," she answered after a quick moment.

"Thirty seconds," Artemis counted down, spitting the remaining toothpaste in the sink and wiping his mouth without care. He walked out, looking in the mirror and running a hand through his own damp hair.

"Oh, Gods, Artemis. I don't know!" Holly rolled her eyes and took another deep breath. "You're an assassin."

Artemis' head snapped to her, and his breathing sped up. The fire burning in his eyes already told Holly she was right.

And he was not happy about that.

 **Leave a review, please! I'll cherish it with all my heart.**


	24. Chapter 24

**Hey everyone! Finally have a moment to sit down and write an authors note because I got a new computer for Christmas! I hope you like the chapter, and make sure to leave a review. I want to know your opinions, good or bad.**

 **This would have been posted yesterday, but I became very violently ill in the past few days.**

 **I guess I should also say Happy New Year! But I believe about 90% skipped this note to get to the story. So this is for the 10%!**

The room was dead quiet as the two stared at each other for what seemed like forever. Artemis glared at her, challenging her to take back her words, while Holly raised an eyebrow, daring him to make her. Finally, he opened his mouth to respond to her accusation, but at that moment, all the blood rushed out of Holly's face.

Her body began to tremble and, for a second, Artemis was afraid she was going to faint right then and there. Instead, she bolted past him to the bathroom.

Artemis was still in too much shock to process what she was doing until he heard the sharp, intense sound of her retching in the other room. That seemed to snap him out of his daze and he moved to follow her in.

He sighed when he saw her and knelt down next to her. "How?" he asked quietly, wrapping a hand around Holly's hair and holding it back for her.

Holly coughed and wiped her mouth, resting her head on the white cabinet beside her. She shook her head weakly, not wanting to answer.

"Holly," Artemis said, his voice more stern. He frowned, gently tugging at her hair and making her look him in the eyes. "How did you know? Tell me."

It was a few seconds before she responded, her wide hazel eyes looking into his serious, dangerous blue ones. "I...I don't know," Holly whispered weakly. "I mean, from the start, I think. I just didn't want...I didn't want it to be true."

Artemis ran his hand through her hair, making Holly flinch and take a deep, shuttering breath. "Damn it," he breathed, letting go of her hair and rubbing a hand over his face.

Holly sat on the ground, blinking back a few tears and looking down at her hands. "Your combat skills, hostage knowledge, and your panic to get to your work… It always made sense in the back of my mind, I just kept telling myself that you weren't…"

"A trained killer?" Artemis finished for her. He shook his head and got up. Grabbing a small plastic cup, he filled it with tap water and helped her up, handing it to her. "Here. It will make you feel better."

Holly took it and looked up at him. "You're not going to hurt me?" she asked cautiously.

"No," he answered plainly, looking away and leaning against the white door frame behind him. She looked down at her water silently, taking a sip and spitting it out in the sink. "There are some extra toothbrushes under the sink," he informed her, pushing away from the frame and going back to the bedroom.

Holly came out a few minutes later, the sour taste out of her mouth, but a bitter one still lingering. Artemis was pacing, looking at the floor thoughtfully. She stood there for a moment, watching him go through his thoughts and often run a hand through his black hair.

"I still trust you," she told him quietly, looking him up and down.

Artemis whirled around to look at her. "That's not the problem here," he responded, sighing. He looked at her with knowing eyes. "I don't trust you. And I definitely don't trust myself."

His words stung — Holly couldn't claim they didn't — but it was understandable. There was no telling how much Artemis had gone through to get where he was now. "Artemis…" she started walking over to him. "If you really wanted to hurt me, you would have by now."

"Don't think I didn't want to before," he challenged, then sighed when she put a hand on his cheek. "Now you're just looking for trouble, Holly."

"No, I'm not," she murmured softly, studying his face. "I want to go to bed, and I have… a lot of questions for you."

Artemis exhaled deeply, pulling away. "I don't… I can't, Holly."

"Why not?" she questioned, "It's not as though I'll be leaving anytime soon." Holly looked at him, seeing the hesitancy still in his eyes and adding, "You're in control, Artemis. I'm not going to pressure you to answer anything you don't want to."

He looked her over for a second, and Holly went over to the bed. She laid down, her eyes wide as she glanced up at him. Another second of contemplation, and Artemis found himself walking up to the bed as well.

Holly noticed his eyes go directly to the bedside table. It was where he kept the electronic key to his bedroom and the handcuffs he had used on her before. Her eyes went down, studying the bedspread and trying to keep a calm demeanor about her. She expected him to grab her wrists or to hear the bolt of the door lock, but none of that came. Instead, she felt the mattress move as Artemis laid down next to her.

Artemis watched her eyes glance up at him. "Ask away," he breathed.

A small smile escaped from her calm expression before she became serious. "Did you choose to do this?"

"No," he answered simply, his body stiff and cautious, but he still rested his head on the pillow. "I didn't get a choice."

Holly blinked a few times. She had figured as much, with his initial disappearance and the "body" they had buried. "Who did this to you?"

"An organization that works off of the government's money, but doesn't work in it," he explained. "They trained me, and then when I was beyond good enough, I was sent out."

Her stomach lurched and, for a moment, Holly thought that she would have to run off to the bathroom again. She didn't want to imagine what he went through with training. Holly had a feeling it was very different than the training she received at the LEP Academy.

"Do you have any more questions?" Artemis raised an eyebrow at her. He had noticed that Holly was paler than she was just a moment ago.

"Have you killed anyone?" Her voice was so quiet, Artemis didn't register it at first. Holly couldn't bring herself to look at him when she asked.

Artemis was silent for a moment, thinking about how he should answer. If he should at all. "Does it matter?" he finally questioned. "You'll be terrified of me no matter what I say."

"No…" Holly shook her head slowly.

"Bullshit," Artemis called bluntly. "If I say I have, you'll be scared of me. If I say I haven't, you'll be scared I'm lying to you. Either way, you'll be afraid I have some sort of bloodlust."

Holly sighed, glancing up at him and nodded. "Okay," she murmured, resting her head against his chest gently.

Artemis took that as an indicator that she was done questioning him, and he ran a hand through her hair with a soft touch. Slowly, he wrapped an arm around her and cradled Holly to his chest.

His body was still aware and on-guard at all times, but being in his arms, Holly felt safe in some weird way.

They stayed like that for the rest of the night, not speaking or moving. Just taking solace in each other.

 **Next chapter coming out soon. I had about a month off, so I have a lot of chapters in storage. Maybe if I get more reviews, the chapter will come out sooner rather than later. ;)**


	25. Chapter 25

******Things are about to get...Interesting.**

Holly woke up the next morning, tucked inside a blanket she wasn't in when she fell asleep. She sighed, resting her head against the pillow. Artemis must have wrapped her in it once she finally fell asleep.

Speaking of him… Holly tilted her head and listened into the bathroom. When she didn't hear any water running, Holly frowned and sat up.

She had noticed he wasn't next to her the moment she woke up. Holly hadn't felt the pressure of his arms around her waist, the smell of his aftershave, or the rise and fall of his chest on her back or cheek.

Holly got up, walking to the bathroom slowly. "Artemis?" she called out, opening the door.

Nothing. He wasn't in there and the lights were off. She sighed, frowning. He wouldn't just leave her alone, she knew that Holly, her heart pounding, crossed the bedroom and started going down the spiral stairs right outside his door. She looked around the empty flat, frowning.

Holly tried Artemis' office door once she got down the stairs, but it was locked. "Artemis?" She repeated herself from before, this time a little bit louder.

With no answer, Holly walked through the living room to the kitchen and saw a note on the gray and white counter.

 _Holly,_

 _A deal is a deal. Decided to let you sleep in, but reinforced the locks on the front door and locked my study._

 _Don't try anything. And I know I have trust issues._

 _Artemis J._

Holly sighed, half-smiling from his decision to hold his part of the deal from the night before and let her roam around the apartment instead of tying her up again.

But then she looked at his signature and she frowned. Running a finger over the 'J' initial, Holly looked away. James. Artemis James.

She wanted to tell him so badly about what was going on. Tell him that his last name was Fowl and that he had a family. A family that loved him and missed him.

With another shake of her head, Holly went to the fridge and grabbed a bottle of water. She knew Artemis wouldn't mind.

She relaxed on the couch with a sigh, taking a sip of the water. He had actually left her here — untied — for the day. Holly stretched. She felt comfortable and at ease, for once, since she got here.

Not that Artemis was bad. In fact, Holly wanted to see him again. It was just the entire situation they were stuck in that made her feel uneasy. Just thinking about him being an assassin made her stomach turn.

Gods… an assassin. She got up, putting the bottle on the couch and walking around the couch slowly. Holly suddenly felt sick again, like last night. What had he gone through to get like this? Had he killed anyone? What could he do to her? What _would_ he do to her?

Holly sighed and squeezed her eyes shut tightly. It physically hurt, thinking about those things. She needed something to distract her.

Holly looked around, pursing her lips. She wondered about Foaly, and if there was some way she could reach him from here. A phone, a laptop —something. She did have the entire suite to explore.

Knowing there was nothing in his room on the second floor, Holly looked around the living room she was standing in the middle of. There were small, dark brown, round tables on either side of the stone fireplace and a ledge on the top of it, but they didn't have anything on them. There were also one on the edge of one side of the L-shaped burgundy couch, but only a lamp stood on that. She sighed, feeling the soft carpet under one bare foot and the cold, hard wood under the other.

 _Maybe there's a phone line…_ Holly thought, thinking about her days in ancient technology class at the Academy. She moved to the wall and crouched down, scanning behind the tables.

There was a phone line outlet, but it was empty. Holly sighed in annoyance, standing back up and going to the kitchen.

She crossed the marble counter island in the middle and looked around the small corner next to the fridge. Another phone jack, but no phone. Holly rolled her eyes, resting her head against the wall. Artemis had probably taken them out and locked them in his office before he left.

"Unbelievable," Holly muttered, glancing across the room at his closed office door. She knew he locked it, and it was probably even more reinforced than his front door.

Holly walked to it, kneeling down and looking at the lock. It was state of the art, for human times. But Holly could most likely pry the electronic lock with a fork and see what was in there.

However, then Artemis wouldn't trust her ever again. And he would probably be livid. _Not a very smart idea to piss of the assassin…_ Holly thought, looking around again.

This was useless. The windows were painted and nailed shut, with a lock that needed a key to open for all of them. A security measure so no one could get out… or in.

The door needed a key to get out as well. Remembering Artemis' note, he probably installed that lock while she was sleeping before he left.

Holly shook her head, resting against the back of the couch for a moment before pushing off of the fabric and going back up the stairs to his room. If she couldn't figure out a way to contact Foaly or Root, then she'd figure more out about Artemis.

She started with the closet, going through it carefully and slowly. She went through all of the clothes he kept hanging in there, which wasn't much. A black jacket, a few mute-colored v-necks along with some jeans, both blue and black. Two pairs of sneakers were at the bottom of the closet.

A black suit was in a plastic dry cleaning bag, along with Italian dress shoes right underneath it. Holly felt the suit material and smiled. It was an extremely nice one. _You can't brainwash that out of him_ , she thought.

Holly grabbed the jacket, pulling it on and zipping it up. After closing the closet door, she shoved her hands in the pockets of the jacket and walked over to the dresser.

Socks, boxers, some pajama pants, all folded neatly in the few drawers the dresser had. There was also one more drawer that was locked tightly with a scanner. She ignored it, looking to the side of the dresser where a duffel bag was. Probably there so he could get out quickly if need be.

There wasn't much left to the room as she looked around. The big king-sized bed they had slept in was against the wall in the middle of the room, and around the corner was the bathroom. Holly went to the bedside table, trying to open the small drawer. When she couldn't, she remembered that he religiously locked it with a key he kept on him.

Holly wrapped her arms around herself, going back downstairs and lying down on the couch. Holly rested her head on a pillow and nuzzled the inside of the jacket. She smiled softly when she realized it smelled like him, and her eyes fluttered close as she began to fall asleep.

Holly's eyes opened at the sound of the front door opening and closing. She looked up, propping herself on her arms and giving him a once-over.

Artemis didn't even look at Holly when he came in, locking the door behind him and running a hand through his hair. Holly frowned, getting up from the couch and wrapping her arms around herself again. "Hey."

Artemis' eyes snapped to her, startled almost. "I see you've been in my closet." He nodded to his jacket she was still wearing.

"I could've been in worse." She smiled, leaning over the couch at him. Holly sighed when he went over to the counter. "What's wrong?"

He leaned over the counter, not looking at Holly. His jaw was set and he folded his hands. "Your Record came back."

Holly's smile dropped at his words and she circled around the couch. Her stomach twisting with anxiousness. "What was on it?" she asked, almost hesitantly. She felt as though she didn't want to hear that the LEP was on it, even though that was absolutely absurd to think. They couldn't find out about the LEP; it was too hidden.

Gods, it felt like the longest moment in Holly's life as she waited for him to answer. He took out a piece of paper from his back pocket and unfolded it slowly. "Holly Short," he read off the chart. "22 years of age, no family connections." He glanced at her. "Officer of the New York Police Department, specialization in hostage negotiations."

Holly internally sighed in relief. "So, nothing bad?"

Artemis shook his head, giving her an encouraging, small smile. "No. Nothing bad."

"So, what now?" Holly strode over to him and leaned her hip against the counter. The secret of the LEP was still safe, as far as she knew. "And why do you look upset?"

"I didn't think the record would get here this fast," he told her, putting the paper on the counter and pushing off the edge. "And I have to take you in now, so they can train you to be like me."

The twisted feeling in her stomach returned. She gave him a shocked look and slowly backed away, distancing herself away from the man in front of her. "You mean...like an assassin?" Holly gasped lightly and shook her head. "No… I don't want that…"

If she had even an inkling of what Artemis went through during his training, Holly did not want anything to do with that. Torture beyond anything she had seen. Tiny rooms. Starvation, even. All leading up to her becoming brainwashed. To forget everything she knew so she could become a well-oiled killing machine.

Artemis scoffed. "It's not as though you have a voice in this, Holly." He sighed. "And neither do I. I have to take you in by noon tomorrow."

"You don't have to, Artemis. You can let me go." Holly kept backing away from him slowly, but Artemis followed her until he backed her in the counter ledge. Her breath hitched slightly and she looked up at him.

He leaned over her, placing an arm on either side of her. He scoffed. "That's not going to happen," he murmured. "I can't disobey my higher-ups." Artemis looked down. "They'll kill me if I do."

"Then why don't we just leave?" Holly proposed, looking up at him with wide, fearful eyes. "That way, we can go and be together."

Artemis shook his head. "That's not going to happen either." He ran a hand through her hair gently. "But we can work together."

Now it was Holly's turn to scoff, and she looked away from him. "After what? They torture me? Rape me?"

"It's not as bad as you think."

Holly closed her eyes, repeating his words sarcastically in a mumble. "It's not as bad…" She shook her head.

Artemis was so deep in his thoughts that he didn't notice the movement until it was too late. His head whipped to the side as a loud "slap" echoed through the otherwise silent apartment. Stunned and cheek stinging, Artemis stared at Holly, fuming.

Holly yelped when Artemis took hold of her arm and whirled her around, bending her over the counter and pulling her arms behind her back. She struggled against his grip, but he was too strong. "Please don't do this, Artemis, please." Holly felt metal against her wrists and heard the snap of handcuffs around them. She pulled against them as Artemis eased up on his grip and Holly turned back, looking up at him.

They stared at each other for a few moments more before a strangled sob finally escaped Holly. Then, the tears hit.

She collapsed and Artemis moved to catch her without thinking. He slowly lowered them to the floor, following his instincts and gathering Holly in his arms, rocking her gently. "It'll be okay," he whispered into her ear. "It's not that bad, I promise. And we can be together after all of it."

With a shake of her head, Holly wiped her eyes on his shoulder and pulled away. She had to stop this. If Artemis took her in, Foaly and Root would never be able to find her. Holly would forget them, and herself. "You like deals." She breathed, her eyes still wet and practically impossible to see out of. "I'll make you one." Holly blinked the tears out of her eyes, looking up at him.

Artemis didn't say anything. He just raised an eyebrow at her, and Holly took that as a sign that he was intrigued and continued.

"If you listen to me and look something up, I'll stay quiet and do whatever you want."

After a hesitant moment, Artemis nodded and looked Holly up and down, assessing her. "Deal."

Holly nodded, looking away. She could feel the tears welling up in her eyes again and she cursed herself internally. She had been waiting to do this for so long, but she had to be careful. Holly knew she couldn't tell him the entire truth — not without sounding like a crazy person — but she could tell a parallel version of it.

"The little boy...the one I told you about before, when I was in the shower. The one that died." Holly swallowed thickly and closed her eyes. "That was you, Artemis. That's why I followed you here, why I knew your name." Holly opened her eyes and glanced up at him. "I know you."

Artemis stared at her for a moment before shaking his head. "That's impossible. You said you had found a body."

"We did," Holly rationalized pleadingly. "The people you work for…they must have planted a fake one, or at least a real one that they copied to be you." She sighed. "I know this sounds crazy, Artemis, but you have to believe me."

He pulled away, looking her over and standing up. "I don't believe you," he murmured, shaking his head. "You're not making any sense. You have to be lying." Artemis turned, going back into his study.

Holly swiveled around on her knees, watching him go. Her heart had sank at his words. "Please, Artemis. Just look up Artemis Fowl II. It'll probably bring you to an Irish site. Please. You have to look it up." Her voice was low and raspy from her desperation.

"No," he said plainly, taking a case out of his office and setting it on the coffee table in front of the couch. "I'm sorry, Holly. I'm taking you in tomorrow whether you like it or not." Artemis sighed, looking at her with dead serious, almost dangerous eyes. "And you're going to follow my orders whether you like it or not as well."

Crippling fear shot through Holly and she found enough strength to get up with her hands still cuffed behind her back. She stared at him with wide, bloodshot eyes for a second before bolting around the counter.

It didn't take much for Artemis to catch her. Honestly, it wasn't even much of a chase, and it wasn't as though Holly could run or hide anywhere Artemis couldn't find. He grabbed Holly by her arms and yanking her back to his body as she struggled ferociously against him.

"Now you're just being foolish," he growled, frustrated as he dragged her to the couch roughly.

Holly kicked at him when he pushed her onto the couch, crying out in her efforts to keep Artemis away from her. Artemis grunted in mild pain, but grabbed her legs, swinging himself around and sitting on top of her waist. He looked down at her, giving Holly a smug grin since she couldn't kick him or get up anymore.

Artemis grabbed the case he had set on the table and opened it. He then grabbed her legs and pushed them together, quickly tying them together at her ankles and knees. Once he knew she was fully incapacitated, Artemis got off of her. "Now you're just pushing me," he teased, raising a slim eyebrow.

Holly let out another breathy, strangled sob. This was the side of Artemis she hated, and she had forced it out of him. "Artemis…"

"Shh…" Artemis kneeled down next to her. He would straddle her lap, but did not feel like getting kicked in the groin because of it. Her knees were tied together, but not down. "I am truly sorry about this, Holly. But I have to do this."

"Please," she tried again, begging him to stop this. But it only resulted in him wrapping a blindfold over her eyes. Holly whimpered softly and tilted her head down. She pressed her lips together tightly, knowing what was next.

That elicited a sigh from Artemis. He shook his head, running a finger down her cheek and tilting her head up by her chin. Artemis leaned down, pressing his lips against hers and worked his lips hard on hers. Once he forced them open, Artemis pulled back and quickly pressed the gag into her mouth, tightening it behind her head.

Artemis hated to do that, but he knew he had to. "I'm sorry," he repeated what seemed like the hundredth time that day. "Holly, you should know that I'm supposed to do so much worse than this to you." Artemis sighed and stood up, clearing his throat. "I'm going to tie your ankles to the couch, so don't think you can try to get to the kitchen like this to find something to cut your bonds."

After doing such, Artemis refrained from running a hand through her hair or kissing her forehead. He just shook his head, going up the stairs and to his room. Leaving her there.

 **Leave a review please!**


	26. Chapter 26

**Hey guys! So, if I think you can guess my New Year's resolution. I do want to write more, and I want to get more out to you. So, right now Im focusing on one chapter a week, and then after I get used to it, 2 maybe? I dont know, we'll play it by ear. But I have been keeping up with the chapters so far. *Knocks on wood***

Artemis woke up the next day in his bed, stretching and sighing. He looked around the empty room and remembered the night before when he tied Holly down. With a shake of his head, he sat up and rubbed his eyes with the heels of his hands.

It was hard to do, but it had needed to be done. Now he was taking her to his employers, and he couldn't help but wonder if this was the right decision.

But he didn't have a choice. He had to bring her to them or they would kill him. And Holly, now that she were on their radar.

Artemis got up, taking a shower and taking his time before getting out. He put on a black shirt and jeans before going downstairs to where Holly was.

When he saw her on the couch, having not moved since last night, he sighed. She probably hadn't had any sleep the night before and, for a moment, Artemis felt guilty about it.

But it was only for a second. Then he snapped back to reality and sighed, going into his office and grabbing a knife from his desk drawer. He kept it on him as he exited his office and strode into the kitchen, grabbing some fruit from the bottom drawer in the fridge to make breakfast. She deserved that, at least.

The sound of a blender whirring loudly inside the kitchen startled Holly awake. She shrieked against her gag and struggled, trying to sit up on the couch. It wasn't as though she had been sleeping soundly anyway. Being tied up didn't really allow for a comfortable position to sleep.

She whimpered, trying to get as far away from the sound as she possibly could in her position. She couldn't see a single thing, and she was defenseless.

The sound intensified before it stopped, but Holly was never touched. She could hear footsteps of someone — probably Artemis — coming over, and she forced her body to calm. The next thing she knew, Artemis took off her blindfold.

Holly looked up at Artemis. The gag was still in her mouth, so she couldn't talk, but she sure as hell could give him the worst glare she had ever given anyone. Artemis was holding a clear plastic cup with a pink liquid in it and a straw sticking out of the cup. "If I take out the gag, will you scream?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

She mimicked his look, raising an eyebrow back at him and staring at the man for a moment as she contemplated. Finally, she shook her head, giving him a small grunt as she sat back against the arm of the couch and raised her bound legs to her chest.

Artemis sat in front of her, one hand taking out the gag and placing it on the coffee table with the blindfold. "Good." He gave her a small smile, taking the tip of the straw and bringing it to her mouth.

Holly opened her mouth, leaning her head forward to take the straw in her mouth. But, upon doing so, found an even better option. She tilted her head to the side at the last minute and bit his hand. Hard.

"Dammit!" Artemis exclaimed, jumping up and dropping the smoothie. The last knuckle on his index finger was bleeding. Holly smirked at that, raising an eyebrow at him without saying anything. Artemis took one look at her and sighed, shaking his head. "Fine. I guess I deserved that."

Holly didn't respond, looking away as Artemis disappeared into his office to wrap his finger. He came back out in a minute. "Do you want breakfast or not?" he asked bitterly.

"Why not? If it's the last meal I'll get anyway," Holly grumbled, looking at him with daggers.

Artemis shook his head, exasperated as he went back to the kitchen across from the living room and poured the rest of the smoothie mixture he had made into a cup. He walked over and leaned over Holly. "Are you going to bite me again?"

"Maybe," Holly answered defiantly.

Artemis scoffed and took the knife out, pressing it against her throat. "How about now?" he nearly growled, getting tired of her not listening to him.

"Getting irritated?" Holly questioned, acting like she wasn't phased at all by the cold, sharp metal pressed against her hot neck. In reality, she wanted to panic and move away. She didn't know what Artemis was fully capable of anymore. "Fine," she said with a sigh after a moment. "I won't bite." Holly opened her mouth, and Artemis fed her the straw.

Holly drank her breakfast fast, glancing up at him slightly every now and again, but never for long. Artemis could tell she was extremely mad at him, given the look in her eyes and the bloody teeth marks on his finger. He took the empty cup away and looked at the mess on the ground, rolling his eyes and leaving it there. The housekeepers would clean it up later.

Artemis threw the cup away before going back to Holly, the knife still in his hand. He looked at her, twirling the weapon in his fingers expertly as he spoke. "So. I'm going to untie you." He pointed the tip of the knife at the bonds on her legs. "And we're going to go upstairs—"

"I'm not having sex with you, Artemis," Holly growled, still glaring at him.

He just rolled his eyes at that. "Don't flatter yourself, Ms. Short," he told her, giving her a small, smug grin. "I'm just going to get my bag ready before we leave, and I figured you would like to move those stiff joints of yours around before we do so."

Holly looked down, pursing her lips. Maybe she could escape once they leave the suite, and her legs needed to be in a condition to run to do that. "Fine," she told him. "I won't fight you." _Yet…_ Holly added in her mind.

Artemis nodded and cut the bonds off of her legs. He took her ankles gently and stretched her legs down.

"Artemis…" Holly looked at him before pushing off the couch. She made sure not to hit him however, no matter how much she wanted to. Getting tied back up was not something she wanted to achieve.

With a roll of his eyes, Artemis stood up and grasped her arm to lead her up the stairs to his room. "What? Are we at the beginning again? You don't trust me?"

Holly shot him another look. "Yes," she answered plainly. "You insult me, tie me up, and gag me the exact same way you did before. The way you told me you wouldn't do again, and you think everything is going to be alright between us?" Holly scoffed. "Not to mention, you're taking me to my own slaughter later today."

"I'm not getting you killed," he told her, pushing her on the bed and grabbing his duffel bag. "I'm rehabilitating you."

"Whatever helps you sleep at night, Fowl." Holly rolled her eyes, not caring about being careful with his name anymore. It wasn't like he believed her anyway.

"Don't call me that." Artemis finished packing a little from his drawers and went to his closet, grabbing a coat. "Stand up."

Holly did as he said, still frowning as he circled around the bed and draped the coat over her shoulders so the handcuffs on her wrists couldn't be seen. "You're not going to take them off?"

That earned her a harsh laugh as Artemis adjusted the coat. "I'm not stupid, Holly. I'm a trained assassin. If I let you out of these, if will be a lot easier for you to try to escape."

"I look stupid with your jacket and coat on!" Holly protested, looking at him. Her plan to get away was smashed to little bite-sized pieces, and she was trying everything to put it back together again.

"I don't care." Artemis walked over to the drawer on his dresser that was locked and pressed his left index finger on it. After a quick scan, the drawer popped open and Artemis pulled out a small handgun and a handful of syringes. He put the syringes in the bag before swinging the black duffel bag over his shoulder and going over to Holly.

With wide eyes, Holly looked at Artemis. Or, more specifically, the weapon now in his hand. She didn't recognize the make or model of it, since it had been ages since LEP officers used actually bullet-wielding guns, but she knew it was deadly.

"Come on." He took her shoulder, leading her down the stairs again. Holly bit her lip, holding back the small whimper that wanted to come out of her mouth as her eyes whipped into her peripheral vision to see the gun in his right hand.

Holly was jostled down the stairs, trying to go slower than Artemis wanted to. She looked around the suite as he walked her to the front door, knowing that she would probably never see it again.

Artemis opened the door and led her out, making a point to press the gun against her side so she was fully aware of its presence, but concealing it under the coat so no one could see. Down the stairs and through the lobby, they walked. Holly counted about a dozen people that they passed by on their way out that she could run to for help… If she didn't have a gun jammed against her ribs. No, to them, the two most likely seemed like a normal couple.

He led her to a garage in the back of the building, going up two flights of stairs before going through the parked cars. He opened the back seat to a black sedan and gestured to it with the gun. "Lay down."

Holly did as he said silently, lying down in the backseat of the car. Artemis leaned into it, pulling the middle seatbelt around her waist and strapping her in. Wordlessly, he took the blindfold he used last night out of his pocket and wrapped it over her eyes again. Holly didn't protest, knowing that he did that so she didn't know where she was going.

She heard the car door close and the front one open before the car came to life. Holly settled in for what would seem to be the longest car ride of her entire life.

Holly tried to take in how many turns they took and how long it was to get there, but she ended up losing track after about 50 turns and 30 minutes. Most likely, Artemis wasn't going straight there anyway, just to make sure she didn't figure it out.

When the car finally did stop, Holly's heart pounded in her throat. Artemis came around and helped her out of the car, his hands gripping her arms tightly as he led her. When he stopped, Holly took in a deep, shaky breath. "Can you take off my blindfold now?" she asked softly.

Without answering, the blindfold fell off and Holly blinked. She expected to be in a building, or a bunker, or...something. Instead, the wind made her hair cover her eyes and Holly shook it away, taking in their surroundings.

They were in an aircraft hanger, and there were tons of jets and planes around them, big and small. She and Artemis were standing in front of one with its door open.

Holly looked at Artemis, who was standing behind her and a little to her right. "You take a jet to work everyday?" she asked. That seemed tedious.

Artemis smiled slightly at her, shrugging. "Only when I'm going to Ireland."

 **:) I know. I'm sneaky.**


	27. Chapter 27

**Insert witty Author's Note here.**

Holly stared at him blankly, trying to process what he had said for a long moment. "Ireland?"

He smirked, "Yes, Ireland. Fowl Manor, to be exact." He looked around, running a hand through his hair.

"You looked it up," Holly said in disbelief.

"Yeah." Artemis looked back at her. "Last night, after I went up to bed."

"Why were you being such an ass then?"

He sighed, his eyes squinting in the early sunlight. "Because sometimes I'm like that," Artemis defended. "It helps me feel like I have more control of the situation. That and...I wasn't sure what I was going to do. But, driving over here, I just...I couldn't hand you over like they wanted me to."

Holly stared at him for a long moment again, thinking. "Untie me," Holly told him suddenly.

Artemis arched an eyebrow. "Are you going to try and hit me again?" he asked, chuckling softly.

"Maybe," she responded. "But first I'm going to kiss you."

Artemis smiled softly and looked down. "Inside," he murmured, leaning forwards and pressing his lips to her ear. "They could be watching."

Holly shivered softly, and she knew it couldn't be due to the cold. She was wearing a jacket and a coat. "You are so paranoid," she whispered back.

"Mm, maybe," he chuckled again. Artemis pulled at her arm, taking her out of the cold and into the jet.

She looked around the jet. It was nice, with two pairs of seats, tables, and even a couch. A bar and bathroom were at the end of the cabin. All of it was either a tan or dark brown, including the carpet on the floor of the cabin.

"You should sit," Artemis suggested, smirking at her and closing the door with a press of a button right next to the door itself. "I'll start up the jet."

"You know what I think?" Holly smirked up at him, shrugging off his coat and sitting down in a lounge chair. She spun it around with her feet to face him.

"What?" He dropped his duffel bag on the side of the cabin, his gun going into the waist of his pants.

Holly smirked at him. "That you like me tied down."

Artemis raised an eyebrow and walked over to her. He leaned over her and looked her in the eyes. "Maybe I do." Artemis kissed her deeply, and Holly moaned softly against his lips before he pulled away. "The key is in my bag. I'll uncuff you when I get back." He smirked and winked at Holly, going into the cockpit.

Holly sighed and sat back against the comfortable material of the chair. Once Artemis had disappeared into the front of the jet and closed the door behind him, Holly closed her eyes, relaxing.

She sat there for a while as Artemis messed with the controls in the front, making sure everything was in proper order before flight. Holly hadn't even noticed how much time had passed before she felt her hair being pushed behind her ear. She smiled and shivered slightly again at the pressure, biting her lip. "Mm, Artemis…" she murmured, her eyes flickering open and looking up. But they widened and she gasped softly, jerking back.

The man leaning beside her was not Artemis. He was handsome and built like Artemis, but had brown, short hair and cold, green eyes. He was wearing a black sweater and jeans, which made him seem even more dangerous than he already looked.

He pressed a gloved hand against Holly's mouth and her heart sped up even more. "Shh…" he whispered, kneeling down next to her. "We're not here to hurt you." He pushed back the hair that had fallen in Holly's face with the tip of the handgun in his right hand. "Only to kill you."

Holly tried to pull away, to shout for Artemis, but the man had too strong a grip on her. That, and the barrel of a gun pressed against her temple rather made her not want to anger him.

"You're so dramatic." The second voice came from behind Holly's chair, and she had just enough room in her peripheral vision to see who was talking. It was another man, this one almost the polar opposite of the one pointing the gun at her. He was tall as well, but not very muscular. He had blond hair and glasses over his blue eyes, but still looked dangerous with a gun in his hand. He sat in a chair across the aisle from Holly, raising an eyebrow at her. "At least Art did half of the work by chaining her up." Holly recognized his accent as Australian.

Holly struggled against the handcuffs still around her wrists, glaring at the two men. The one holding his hand over her mouth chuckled softly. "Mm, you're a feisty one," he murmured, and Holly rolled her eyes and grunted against his hand. He smirked, glancing back up at the blond one.

Her heart raced as she tried to keep a calm persona about her. She didn't know who they were, but she knew that it was about Artemis, so Holly could only assume they were assassins as well.

As the jet started, Holly closed her eyes and pressed into the seat some more. The man holding her raised an eyebrow. "Hate flying, darling?"

Her eyes shot open and she glared at him. Anyone that actually knew her knew she loved flying. She just hated the idea of being trapped in this tight little container with three guns when she didn't have one and her hands were tied behind her back.

She felt herself stop breathing as Artemis opened the door. "Alright, all se-"

He didn't get to finish before the man holding onto Holly yanked her out of the seat, holding her against his chest with the grip he had on her mouth. She yelped against his hand at the rough movement. Holly didn't have to look or turn her head to know the gun was still pointed at her temple. "Hey, Art."

Artemis instinctively drew his own gun, pointing it steadily at the man holding her with daggers in his eyes. "Troy. Cooper," he growled curtly.

 **Insert asking for reviews like a petty review whore here. ;)**


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